Child Sexual Abuse and Associated Factors Among High School Female Students in Arba Minch Zuria Woreda, Southern Ethiopia: A Cross-Sectional Study

Background Child sex abuse is a severe violation of fundamental human rights that has numerous negative consequences, including physical and psychological ones, and is a huge global public health issue. It is a significant public health issue that affects millions of people annually around the world but is the least acknowledged and reported form of violence in Ethiopia against schoolgirls. Thus, this study is very important to provide recent information on the magnitude of sexual abuse and its associated factors.Objective This study was aimed at assessing the prevalence of lifetime child sexual abuse and associated factors among high school female students in Arba Minch Zuria Woreda (AZW), Southern Ethiopia.Methods An institutional-based cross-sectional study was conducted among 414 randomly selected female high school students in Arba Minch Zuria Woreda between December 20, 2022, and January 20, 2023. A stratified and multi-stage sampling technique was used to select participants from selected high schools. A pretested, self-administered questionnaire was used, and the data were entered using EpiData version 4.6 and analyzed using SPSS (the Statistical Package for Social Science) version 27. Bivariate and multivariate analyses were carried out to identify factors associated with sexual abuse using binary logistic regression. Statistical significance was set at a p-value of less than 0.05.Result In this study area, prevalence of child sexual abuse was 45% (95% CI 40.6-50.2). Students who slept alone at home (AOR = 4.93, 95% CI 1.46-16.67); having no open discussions with their parents (AOR = 4.49, 95% CI 1.62-12.47); drinking alcohol (AOR = 3.3, 95% CI: 1.32-8.28); and having friends who drink alcohol or chew chat (AOR = 6.14, 95% CI 1.58-23.9) were the identified factors associated with child sexual abuse.Conclusion This study found a high level of child sexual abuse among high school female students in Arba Minch Zuria Woreda. High schools must collaborate with parents to develop a strategy to reduce sexual abuse acting against human rights, focusing on identified factors.