Economic Violence and Its Impact on the Socio-Economic Welfare of Women in Kanamkemer Ward, Kenya

Economic violence is an epidemic that exists globally. Economic violence silently kills the victim, tortures, and maims, hence affecting one socially, physically, economically, and psychologically. This study investigated the effect of economic violence on the socioeconomic welfare of women in Kanamkemer Ward, Turkana County, Kenya. The study was based on a descriptive cross-sectional survey of women who had experienced economic violence perpetrated on them by their intimate partners. A sample of 99 women who had met the inclusion criteria were recruited to participate in the study. Simple random sampling technique was used to select the study participants who were interviewed to collect data. Data analysis was carried out using statistical package for social sciences version 28. Univariate, bivariate and multivariate analysis were carried out to determine frequencies, establish association and quantify the nature of association. It was observed that majority of the respondents had moderate and low socio-economic welfare, n=41 (42.3%) and n=31 (32.0%) respectively. About 46 (47.4%) of the participants indicated that their partners sometimes withheld economic support when they had misunderstanding, and 30 (30.9%) always withheld the support when there is misunderstanding. Participants who were never allowed by their partners to make major decision on income or expenditure had an increased likelihood of low socio-economic welfare (95% CI: 4.2 (0.4-13.0, P = 0.00)). It was evident that economic control and the withholding of financial support by partners were detrimental to the financial autonomy and overall economic stability of women.