Where, when and what? A national support centre scenario for victims of gender-based violence

Background: Gender-based violence (GBV) is a serious issue that remains highly prevalent in South Africa. However, real-time statistics regarding the number, timing, and location of emergency calls made by victims are limited. Therefore, this study aims to examine the spatial and temporal characteristics of GBV-related emergency calls made to the Help-at-Your-Fingertips (HAYFT) helpline, a national online support centre, from 2020 to 2023. The goal is to identify the regions where these incidents are more frequent and how their incidence is changing over time, particularly concerning social and economic factors and the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods: Deidentified data from HAYFT was used and analysed. This study used the time, geographic, and temporal patterns of emergency calls by the GBV victims to the helpline. Descriptive statistics were employed to examine call frequency with respect to region, temporal, and socioeconomic factors, while geographic pattern analysis helped identify the areas with high concentrations of GBV within regions. Results: Upon examining 53,004 verified calls, it was elucidated that some provinces, such as Limpopo and the North West (104 and 103 calls per 100,000 population), had the highest call rates. Call peaks also occurred in September, November, and December, while call peaks were more likely, though not exclusively associated with public or school holidays, which are thought to be risk periods. Such trends suggest that there are existing limitations in the interpretation of statistics on GBV, which often associate the phenomenon’s incidence and prevalence with certain culture-driven times. Besides, while the number of risk calls in poorer areas was greater, the research also detected significant risk calls coming from higher socio-economic regions, particularly during the pandemic, suggesting wider security risks. Conclusions: The results illustrate the need for focused and data-informed intervention approaches for victims of gender-based violence. In addition, they suggest that better systems are needed to facilitate monitoring and the timely use of such information for resource and intervention planning. This research serves an important purpose for decision-makers and non-governmental organizations that seek to improve the response to gender-based violence across South Africa.