GENDER, SECURITY, AND THE WEAPONIZATION OF SEXUAL VIOLENCE
The systematic use of sexual violence as a weapon of war in African conflicts represents one of the most devastating yet under-examined dimensions of the continent's security crises. This article argues that the weaponization of sexual violence is not a byproduct of conflict but a deliberate strategy of war, a tactic employed to terrorize populations, destroy social cohesion, and assert dominance. Owing to the extensive empirical evidence from Sudan, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Ethiopia, and South Sudan, it demonstrates how sexual violence has been systematically deployed as a weapon of war, with devastating physical, psychological, and socio-economic consequences for survivors and communities. The article critically examines the persistent barriers to addressing conflict-related sexual violence, including entrenched impunity, weak legal systems, health system collapse, and socio-cultural stigma. It documents the catastrophic scale of the crisis; in Sudan alone, UN data shows that the number of women and girls requiring gender-based violence services has quadrupled to an estimated 12.7 million in 2026, while verified incidents of conflict-related sexual violence remain "only the tip of the iceberg." The article critically interrogates the gap between the transformative potential of the Women, Peace and Security agenda and the persistent failure to translate policy commitments into tangible action, exposing how geopolitical headwinds, state-centric framings, and a lack of genuine political will systematically undermine implementation. It argues that meaningful security requires centering survivors' experiences, ensuring women's participation in peacebuilding, and addressing the structural inequalities that enable sexual violence in conflict. The article proposes Ubuntu feminism as a theoretical framework for reimagining security, demonstrating how emerging survivor-centered policies in Africa, including Nigeria's new Disarmament, Demobilisation and Reintegration framework and the Rabat Declaration, represent practical applications of this philosophy. The article concludes with concrete implications for policymakers, scholars, and practitioners, emphasizing the urgent need for survivor-centered approaches, robust accountability mechanisms, and sustained investment in women-led organizations.
Keywords: sexual violence, weapon of war, gender-based violence, Women, Peace and Security, conflict-related sexual violence, impunity, survivor-centered approaches, Ubuntu feminism