DOI: 10.11648/j.jppa.20261003.13 ISSN: 2640-2696

Community-Based Neighbourhood Surveillance and Sexual and Gender-Based Violence Prevention in Likoni Informal Settlements in Mombasa County, Kenya

Okoth Abongo, Japheth Lumadede, Mosoti Dennis, Monica Oundo
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In an informal settlement, where weak institutional structures and limited surveillance persist, violent crimes such as Sexual and Gender Based Violence (SGBV) has remained a public safety and human right concern. These are often exacerbated by numerous infractions that increases the resident’s vulnerability to victimization. In such setting, community-based surveillance has often been used as a dual participatory community policing strategy that not only strengthens informal social security but also encourages the information sharing and proactive crime prevention. However, the empirical evidence on its relationship with SGBV prevention remains limited. This study examined the relationship between community-based neighborhood surveillance and SGBV prevention in the informal settlement of Likoni Mombasa County. The study adopted correlation research design and was guided by both Routine Activity Theory and Brocken Window Theory. The research data were collected from 359 respondents randomly selected from a sample of 399 residents using structured questionnaires, complemented by 10 key informant interviews. Quantitative data were analyzed through Pearson correlation descriptive statistics, and through simple linear regression while qualitative data were analyzed thematically. Due to the emotional and personal nature of SGBV issues, some respondents were reluctant to disclose information effectively, however, the researcher maintained the anonymity of respondents and confidentiality of data collected. The results revealed a strong positive and statistically significant relationship between community-based neighborhood surveillance and SGBV prevention (r =.803, p <.001; R 2 =.644; F = 646.855, p <.001). The analysis showed that neighborhood surveillance explained 64.4% of the variation in SGBV prevention indicating that strengthened community watch groups, information-sharing networks, and mutual social control substantially enhanced SGBV prevention. The study concludes that community-based neighborhood surveillance is an effective community policing strategy for preventing SGBV within informal settlements. It recommends strengthening community watch structures, institutionalizing community-police information-sharing mechanisms, and promoting collaborative neighborhood surveillance initiatives to improve public safety and reduce SGBV in vulnerable urban communities.

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