Abstract
BACKGROUND: Gender-based violence (GBV) is a serious public health issue and violation of human rights that disproportionately impacts refugee women. This qualitative study explores GBV among urban refugee women in Nairobi, Kenya, using the migration process framework (Zimmerman C, Kiss L, Hossain M, PLoS Med 8: e1001034-e1001034, 2011) to explore violence across the migration journey (i.e., in the country of origin, in transit, and while awaiting refugee status determination). To strengthen the analysis, we triangulate the data with the perspectives of service providers. METHODS: Data collection involved two integrated phases. In Phase I, we conducted in-depth interviews with 50 female refugees who survived GBV and represented diverse national backgrounds, all of whom were in Nairobi. In Phase II, we interviewed 20 service providers working with refugees in Nairobi to contextualize and triangulate the accounts of survivors. Thematic analysis was employed to identify patterns of GBV across the migration journey. RESULTS: The findings revealed that refugee women experience multiple and intersecting forms of GBV at each stage of the migration journey. In their country of origin, participants reported that forms of GBV were often tied to war and displacement. During transit, women described exploitation, sexual assault, and violence. In Nairobi, survivors reported ongoing risks, including intimate partner violence, financial abuse, and technology-facilitated violence, compounded by poverty, legal precarity, and stigma. CONCLUSION: This study highlights the continuity of GBV across the migration trajectory, with some forms shifting and others remaining the same but also persisting across the three stages. The findings indicate the need for survivor-centered interventions that address cultural, structural, and systemic drivers of GBV while strengthening protection and services for urban refugees. By centering on refugee women's voices, this study helps fill the evidence gap in understanding GBV among displaced populations in Sub-Saharan Africa.