2025/06/27 by Sakho, Cheikh Sadibou, Mbala, Firmin
paper · doi:10.57832/89n3-zc45
At a time when social violence (at the top of which is sexual and gender-based violence) is on the rise throughout Africa, the need to reflect on the knowledge that structures it and drives its dynamics is becoming ever more pressing. It (re)places the question of protective knowledge at the heart of current events, as an issue that urgently needs to be addressed in order to frame, enrich and fertilize the many initiatives and dynamics involved in the fight against gender-based violence (GBV) and its effects on societies. We refer to protective knowledge as the knowledge, techniques, customs, procedures, innovations and practices, among others, that result from the socio-culturally rooted and fruitful experiences, initiatives, research and experimentation of actors engaged on a daily basis in the fight against GBV. This knowledge, often the result of interactions between local players and social workers, provides the skills, capabilities (Sen, 1999) and aptitudes that enable communities and individuals to prevent the occurrence of violence, provide restorative and regenerative care when it does occur, and build resilience. They represent a middle way between traditional approaches and imported models of response to GBV.