Critical Analysis on the Capacity of Law Enforcement Personnel to Respond to Gender-Based Violence in the Domestic Sphere in West Africa

It is trite that the deep-rooted patriarchal norms of African societies influence the legislations enacted to tackle the menace of gender-based violence (GBV) in Africa. While some African states have taken steps to take legislative and institutional stances to challenge the traditional norms and fight GBV, many African states were eager to enact laws that appear proactive in tackling the menace but without the required political will in terms of enforcement of such laws. An aspect that requires attention as the first point of public step to address issues of GBV is the law enforcement agencies. Many law enforcement agencies saddled with the responsibility of investigating and prosecuting crimes often do not regard GBV that occurs within the domestic sphere as crimes worth investigating. The approach is usually to mediate among the parties and urge the woman, in the cases of intimate partner violence (IPV), to be more submissive to her husband to prevent future occurrences of GBV. This chapter discusses the law enforcement approach to handling GBV incidences in the domestic sphere in West Africa to identify the capacity gaps of law enforcement agents. The comparative methodology is adopted in this research with reliance on primary and secondary resources. The chapter develops a culturally sensitive approach to providing sustainable solutions to enhance the capacity of law enforcement agents to deal effectively with GBV cases in Africa.