The State of Domestic Violence in Rwanda and the Role of the Man

This research assessed the state of domestic violence in Rwanda and the role of the man: root motives, manifestations, consequences and strategies. A sample of 220 key informants (110 women and 110 men) was randomly selected from 11 Districts representing 4 Provinces of Rwanda and the City of Kigali. A mix of quantitative and qualitative design was applied whereby numerical and non numerical data was collected using a questionnaire designed in form of four levels Likert scale with closed and open questions. Piloting survey was conducted in Rulindo District and the results revealed excellent reliability with Cronbach's alpha value of 96%. The data was analyzed using IBM SPSS Statistics 23. The research found that 73.6% of informants women reported having been victims of one or many forms of domestic violence. 90% of respondents affirmed that intimate partner violence is mainly perpetrated by the men due to selfishness and this affects the wives, the children, the men perpetrators, the household, the large family, the community, and the Country. The research recommends empowering Abunzi scheme to deal with cases of domestic violence and provide punishment as home grown solution.