The Girl-child Development and Challenges: A Study of Rape Awareness amongst Teenagers in Edo North Senatorial District

Abstract

Rape incidents, particularly in rural towns, have increased at an alarming rate in recent years. The goal of this study was to look into the level of child rape knowledge among teens in the Edo North senatorial district of Edo state, Nigeria, specifically in relation to the activities of anti-rape advocacy groups in both private and public post-primary educational institutions. Among other things, five key objectives were to determine teenagers’ level of awareness in the area, identify challenges frequently encountered by teenagers with regard to sexuality education, determine the effects of rape on the girl child, and identify the cannels of awareness creation available to the girl child teenager. The study employed a descriptive survey with a purposive sample strategy to pick six (6) secondary schools from three (3) local government units out of a total of six senatorial districts. A five-point likert scale questionnaire with twenty items was utilized to collect data from sixty (60) teenage females in six secondary schools, for a total sample of three hundred and sixty (360) teens. Among other findings of the study, there is no deliberate rape awareness campaign implemented by the community, church, or school, no anti-rape advocacy cell or club in existence to encourage a sustained awareness culture, and so on. Recommendation encourages concerted efforts by post-primary educational institutions, religious centres, parents, and advocacy organizations to extend the windows for rape awareness among teenagers for the protection and benefit of the girl child and society alike.