What is it about?
This study looks at how women in Nairobi, Kenya use self-help groups—like savings clubs or church groups—not only for social or financial support but also as places to talk about sensitive issues like violence. We found that women who had experienced reproductive coercion (pressure or force around pregnancy and contraception) were more likely to discuss these challenges in their groups. However, economic savings groups, while very common, discussed these topics less often, showing a gap and an opportunity for support.
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Why is it important?
Reproductive coercion and intimate partner violence are major barriers to women’s health and rights. Our findings show that women-only self-help groups are already a trusted and widely used space in Kenyan communities. Strengthening these groups to include more open discussion and support could expand access to help for survivors, especially for women who may not feel comfortable seeking formal services. This makes them a promising platform for scalable community-based interventions.
Perspectives
As a researcher, I was struck by how commonly women described leaning on each other in self-help groups to cope with violence and reproductive pressure. It highlights the strength and resilience of women supporting one another, even in difficult circumstances. Personally, this reinforces my belief that solutions to gender-based violence and reproductive health challenges must be rooted in women’s lived experiences and the community structures they already trust. This is particularly important as availability and uptake of formal survivor services is poor in these contexts.
Jasmine Uysal
University of California San Diego
Read the Original
This page is a summary of: Women’s self-help group participation and discussion of reproductive coercion: Associations with past experiences of violence among family planning clients in Kenya, PLOS Global Public Health, September 2025, PLOS,
DOI: 10.1371/journal.pgph.0004087.
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