Analytical Assessment of the Relationship Between Poverty and Gender-Based Violence in Rural Communities in Katsina State

The relationship between household poverty and gender-based violence is theoretically complex, with poverty hypothesised both as a direct driver through stress and coercion and as a structural enabler through limiting victims' exit options, and analytical examination of these mechanisms in rural Katsina State fills an important northern Nigerian criminological evidence gap. This study analytically assessed the relationship between household poverty and gender-based violence outcomes among women in rural Katsina North and Rimi Local Government Areas, Katsina State, North West Nigeria. A cross-sectional analytical survey was conducted among 280 rural women aged 18 to 49. Household poverty was measured using the Multidimensional Poverty Index adapted for rural northern Nigeria. GBV victimisation was assessed using a validated instrument adapted for Islamic northern Nigerian contexts. Path analysis and mediation modelling were applied to examine poverty-GBV relationships. Results showed a significant positive relationship between household poverty and GBV victimisation (beta = 0.49, p < 0.001). Path analysis confirmed that poverty operated through two mechanisms: direct economic stress on male perpetrators (direct effect accounting for 38 percent of total effect) and victim entrapment through financial dependence (indirect effect accounting for 62 percent). Female education moderated the entrapment pathway, with higher female education reducing the financial dependency-GBV link. The study provides original analytical evidence for poverty-GBV mechanisms and recommends economic empowerment of women as a primary GBV prevention strategy in rural northern Nigeria. Keywords: gender-based violence, poverty, rural Katsina, analytical criminology, GBV prevention