RAPID GENDERASSESSMENT
ON THE IMPACT
VIOLENCE AGAINSTWOMENCÔTE D’IVOIRE SURVEY FIELDWORKAUGUST - SEPTEMBER 2021

1 Introduction
Prompted by strong concern that the COVID-19 pandemic has intensified the risk of different forms ofviolence against women and girls, particularly intimate partner/domestic violence, and realizing the need tocollect reliable data that are in line with methodological, safety and ethical standards, UN Womencommissioned Ipsos to conduct a study on the impact of COVID-19 on women’s well-being and safety in 13
countries across several regions all over the world. The participating countries were Albania, Bangladesh,
Cameroon, Colombia, Côte d’Ivoire, Jordan, Kenya, Kyrgyzstan, Morocco, Nigeria, Paraguay, Thailand andUkraine.
The core objectives of the study were to:• collect data on the impacts of COVID-19 on violence against women in low- and middle-income
countries.
• strengthen measurement and methodologies for violence against women data collection and use.
• strengthen available knowledge on all forms of violence against women and improve capacities tocollect, analyse and use data on violence against women in accordance with globally agreed
methodological, safety and ethical standards.
• inform where the policy and programmatic response of UN Women should focus and support
UN system-wide efforts to scale up actions to address violence against women in the context of
COVID-19.
• The following groups contributed to the project’s management and execution:
1. the UN Women project team, comprising statisticians, researchers and policy specialists;
2. the Technical Advisory Group – an external reference group established by UN Women to provide
independent technical advice and expertise to the project;
3. the Ipsos project team involved in the set-up and delivery of the study; and4. national fieldwork partners.

1

Methodology of the study

Target group

Women aged 18 +TimingTwo-phased approach: Phase I (four countries) took place May-June 2021; Phase II (ninecountries) took place August-September 2021

Data collection method

Computer-Assisted Telephone Interview (CATI)
Random probability sampling with monitoring of quota on age and region

Sampling approach
Random-digit dialling to mobile sample frames
Sample Size

1,200 women aged 18+ per country
Target duration of max. 20 minutes
No open-ended answers
Informed consent asked to each participant at the beginning of the interview

Questionnaire length andtype

Awareness of safety, privacy and confidentiality of women respondents
Guided by the “do no harm” principle applicable to the women respondents and theinterviewers/research teamThe questionnaire was adapted in each country by localizing characters’ names andcultural references (i.e., popular food, music, sports).

ScriptingCentral scripting in software applications - iField and Dimensions

Language

At least one main language per country

The country chapters provide information on the set-up of the data collection process (obtaining of ethicalclearance, sampling and translation), description of the fieldwork, main characteristics of the achieved
sample by several indicators (age group, region, area type, educational attainment), technical information(interview duration, contact outcomes, screen-outs, temporary interview suspension at safety questions,survey drop-outs, use of safety word, and item non-response), key field observations and relevant lessons
and recommendations.

22 Country information
2.1

Côte d’Ivoire

2.1.1 Obtaining ethical clearance
UN Women sought general support or tacit approval for the study from the National Institute of Statistics ofCôte d'Ivoire (Institut National De La Statistique). A ‘no objection’ was granted on 27 March 2021 in supportof the project.

2.1.2 Sampling plan
A single-frame cell-phone random-digit dialling (RDD) survey design was used to reach a nationally
representative sample of women aged 18+. The sample mirrored the telephone database distribution (framesize) by provider.1 The gross (unscreened) sample included numbers for each of the providers in the country
to the same proportions as in the frame size. In 2020, 152% of the population had a mobile subscription;2 inother words, many people in the country have more than one mobile phone number registered in their name.
• Of the 52,000,000 numbers available in the sample frame, 40,095,2463 (77%) were expected to beworking numbers (based on cell subscriptions in 2020). The sample was pulsed, meaning that asignal was sent to the randomly generated phone numbers to verify if the numbers existed (i.e., ifconnection could be achieved). The upfront pulsing of the gross sample closely reflected the market
shares of the different operators (in terms of subscriptions). The sample was also screened against
business registers so as to exclude numbers that were used by companies. Further details on thesampling frame are provided in section 2.4.1 of the main technical report.
To ensure a representative sample, quotas were set on age (18–29, 30–39, 40–49, 50–59, 60+) and region(first-level administrative division), using the following statistical sources:• Age: United Nations, Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Population Division (2019).4• Region : Institut National de la Statistique (INS), Projection UNFPA (Common Operational Dataset,administrative level 1, 2019).5

1 Moov 15,000,000; MTN – Côte d’Ivoire 19,000,000; Orange – Côte d’Ivoire 18,000,000.
2 Calculations made using 2020 World Bank data.
3 World Bank Data. 2019. https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/IT.CEL.SETS?end=2020&locations=CI&start=2019
4 World Population Prospects 2019, Online Edition. Rev. 1.: File INT/3-3: Women population by single age, region, subregion and country, annually for
1950-2100. https://population.un.org/wpp/Publications/Files/WPP2019_Volume-I_Comprehensive-Tables.pdf
5 https://data.humdata.org/dataset/cote-d-ivoire-population-statistics

32.1.3 Translation
The questionnaire was translated into French. The translation procedure is explained in more detail in
section 2.5.3 of the main technical report.
No issues related to equivalence (conceptual equivalence, semantic equivalence, etc.) were encounteredduring translation.
The questionnaire required localization for several items in the text of the questions and answers, including
widely known, yet neutral in meaning, male and female names, which were used in the vignettes in thesafety section of the survey. In Côte d’Ivoire, the male name used was Mamadou and the female, Aminata.
Interviewers fluent in Senufo, Dioula and Baoule were recruited and trained for the project in order to makethe survey available to the population in Côte d’Ivoire that only speaks these languages and do not feel
comfortable enough to be interviewed in French. Although in theory these languages have their own writing
systems, these are not always taught in school and a large number of people speak the languages fluently
but cannot write them. Therefore, no written translations were produced for the survey in Senufo, Dioula
and Baoule. Instead, the interviewers read out the questions and answer options in the relevant language
and recorded the answers using the French translation of the questionnaire. A special part of the interviewer
training was dedicated to ensuring that all interviewers use unified translation of the text of the survey. It
incorporated sharing a list with pre-determined translations of the key terms and expressions in the survey
and having recordings of the survey in these languages so that these could be consulted by the interviewers
at any time. The table below provides an overview of the number of interviews completed in each language
during the fieldwork.
Table 1: Number of completed interviews, by language
Language

Number of interviews

Share of total interviews %Senufo5

0.4%

Dioula44

3.3%

Baoule110.8%

French

1265

95.5%

Total

1325

100%

2.1.4 Fieldwork period
Fieldwork took place between 18 August and 24 September 2021. The data-collection period took 11 days
longer than originally planned, as the team in Côte d’Ivoire faced a large number of unanswered calls in thesample and experienced challenges in meeting some of the age group quotas in the survey. In the first twoto three weeks of the fieldwork, the progress of the field team was very slow. The interviewers faced a large
number of unanswered calls. Several factors contributed to this, the main ones being the fact that the
population has multiple SIM cards, which are not always connected to a mobile phone (individual mobile
phone ownership is much lower than SIM card ownership) and constant network issues causing disruption
in communications. Several measures were implemented in order to offset the slow progress of the fieldwork
in Côte d’Ivoire. The calling hours of the interviewers were adapted to match the times of day when women4

were most likely to have time to take part in the survey. In addition to this, more interviewers were recruitedand trained for the survey, enlarging the interviewing team from 10 to 30 people over the span of 10 days at
the beginning of September. To further assist the process, after careful review and with official permission
from the UN Women team, the Côte d’Ivoire field team supplemented the RDD sample with leads from a
pre-existing contact database, compiled from previous surveys conducted in the country. The databaseconsisted entirely of mobile phone numbers, and the selection of these numbers was performed at random
in order to match the original design of the study. In combination, these various measures were successful
in enabling the team to reach the target number of completes (1,200 interviews). However, subsequentquality checks revealed that the age profile of the achieved sample was skewed in some of the age groups
and there was a significant shortfall in the number of interviews achieved among the younger and older age
groups (18–29, 50–59 and 60+ age groups). In an attempt to address this, fieldwork was reopened for fivedays in Côte d’Ivoire and the team managed to increase the number of interviews with women in the relevant
age groups.

2.1.5 Achieved sample
In total, 1,325 valid interviews were completed in Côte d’Ivoire. The distribution of the sample across the 30–
39 and 40–49 age groups was in line with the targets. In the rest of the age groups, the number of completedinterviews was below the set targets – by 6 percentage points in the case of the 18–29 age group, 2
percentage points in the case of the 50–59 group and 2 percentage points among the 60+ age group. To
account for this deviance from the quotas, the achieved sample was weighted per country on the below agegroup categories, according to the specified quota (target %).
Table 2: Achieved sample, by age group (Côte d’Ivoire)
Completed(unweighted)

Completed %(unweighted)

Weighted%6

Difference
unweighted %vs. target %7

Difference
weighted % vs.
target %Age group

TargetTarget%18 – 29

517

43%

487

37%

43%

-6%

0%

30 – 39

283

24%

421

32%

24%

8%

0%

40 – 49

184

15%

223

17%

15%

1%

0%

50 – 59

112

9%

104

8%

9%

-2%

0%

60+

104

9%

90

7%

9%

-2%

0%

The targets in four regions were met but there were some shortfalls in the other regions. These ranged from4 percentage points below the target in Bas-Sassandra and Gôh-Djiboua regions, to 1 percentage point below
the target in the Montagnes and Savanes regions. The achieved sample was weighted per country by region
according to the specified quota (target %).

6 Weighting procedures are discussed in more detail in section 4.4.2 of the main technical report.
7 The figures in this column reflect the actual difference of the unweighted and target percentages. Any variations are caused by the rounding up of
the percentages in the table.

5Table 3: Achieved sample, by region (Côte d’Ivoire)

Completed(unweighted)

Completed %(unweighted)

Weighted%

Difference
unweighted %vs. target %8

Difference
weighted% vs.
target %9

RegionTargetTarget%Abidjan

259

22%

580

44%

21%

22%

0%

Bas-Sassandra

117

10%

71

5%

10%

-4%

0%

Comoé

64

5%

84

6%

5%

1%

0%

Denguélé

16

1%

20

2%

1%

0%

0%

Gôh-Djiboua

83

7%

26

2%

7%

-5%

0%

Lacs

68

6%

46

3%

6%

-2%

0%

Lagunes

77

6%

33

2%

6%

-4%

0%

Montagnes

119

10%

113

9%

10%

-1%

0%

SassandraMarahoué

116

10%

93

7%

10%

-3%

0%

Savanes

87

7%

78

6%

7%

-1%

0%

Vallée du Bandama

79

7%

68

5%

7%

-1%

0%

Woroba

45

4%

22

2%

4%

-2%

0%

Zanzan

51

4%

23

2%

4%

-2%

0%

Yamoussoukro

19

2%

48

4%

2%

2%

0%

The distribution across rural (10.9%) and urban (89.1%) areas (as self-reported by respondents) was lower
than World Bank estimates indicating a rural population of 48.3%10 in Côte d’Ivoire. It is important to notethe use of a mobile RDD sample here, however. Other research on mobile broadband coverage shows that
36% of the population in sub-Saharan Africa live in areas where there is no coverage by mobile broadband
network.11

8 The figures in this column reflect the actual difference of the unweighted and target percentages. Any variations are caused by the rounding up of
the percentages in the table.
9 The figures in this column reflect the actual difference of the unweighted and target percentages. Any variations are caused by the rounding up of
the percentages in the table.
10 World Bank Data. .2020. https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SP.URB.TOTL.IN.ZS?end=2020&locations=CI&start=2020&year_high_desc=true
11 GSMA. 2018. Triggering mobile internet use in Côte d’Ivoire and Tanzania.
https://www.gsma.com/mobilefordevelopment/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/GSMA-Triggering-Mobile-Internet-Use-in-Cote-DIvoire-andTanzania.pdf

6

Table 4: Achieved sample, by area type (Côte d’Ivoire)
Area

Completed (unweighted)

Completed %(unweighted)

Weighted %

Urban

1180

89.1%

86.2%

Rural

145

10.9%

13.8%

Almost six in ten respondents had completed primary school or had no formal education, while a little overthree in ten had completed secondary school or attended technical or vocational training. Fewer than one inten respondents had attended a tertiary education programme.
Table 5: Achieved sample, by educational attainment (Côte d’Ivoire)
Education level

Completed (unweighted)

Completed % (unweighted)

Weighted %No formal education

345

26.0%

26.5%

Completed primary school

448

33.8%

34.3%

Completed secondary school

241

18.2%

19.1%

Technical & vocational training

180

13.6%

12.6%

Completed university/college

99

7.5%

6.5%

Completed post-graduate

5

0.4%

0.4%

Don't know

7

0.4%

0.4%

Refused

5

0.3%

0.3%

2.1.6 Quality control and data processing
One hundred and forty-three interviews were removed from the sample in Cote d’Ivoire because they did notmeet the quality criteria in terms of length, straight-lining and/or item non-response. (Section 4.4 of themain technical report provides a detailed description of the implemented quality control procedures andhow data were processed).

2.1.7 Technical information
The interview duration was slightly shorter than the envisaged length of 20 minutes, at 18.41 minutes on
average (compared with a mean of 23 minutes across the nine countries in Phase II).
Table 6: Interview duration (Côte d’Ivoire)
MeanMedianStandard deviation

18.41

16.82

9.83

7

The response rate in Cote d’Ivoire was 77.93%, calculated by using the first American Association for Public
Opinion Research (AAPOR) definition of response rate – that is, the number of complete interviews divided
by the number of interviews (complete plus partial) plus the number of non-interviews (refusal and breakoff plus non-contacts plus others) plus all cases of unknown eligibility (unknown if housing unit, plus
unknown, other).12 The table below shows the incidence of each outcome code.
Table 7: Contact outcomes (Côte d’Ivoire)
Contact outcomesCount% of all outcomes

Fixed appointment

00%Soft appointment

00%Incomplete interview with call-back toresume later00%

Telephone answering device / voicemail/ message service00%Busy / engaged

00%

No answer

00%Complete

1331

58%

Screen-out00%Incomplete interview with no call-back(terminated)

00%

Immediate refusal (before eligibility of
respondent has been confirmed)

86

4%

Refusal by eligible respondent (after
eligibility of respondent has been
confirmed, but before the actualinterview started)

161

7%

Respondent never available forappointment

653%

Deceased respondent00%

Respondent physically or mentally
unable / incompetent

113

5%

Respondent or household language
problem362%Call blocking / barring / do not call list

65

3%

Fax / data line / modem / pager

00%

Non-working / disconnected / dead /bad number

413

18%

12 AAPOR. 2015. Standard Definitions. https://www.aapor.org/AAPOR_Main/media/MainSiteFiles/Standard-Definitions2015_8thEd.pdf

8Non-residential number (business,government office, other organization)

17

1%

Technical issue / CATI system error

00%

The table below provides an overview of specific call outcomes (completed interview, partial interview, andrefusals) by the time of the day (morning, afternoon, evening) and the day of the week. The figures should
be interpreted with caution as they do not reflect the percentage out of all contact attempts performed
during this time/on that day, but the split of these specific outcomes across the time of the day/day of theweek. Feedback from the field team on the best time and the best day to obtain an interview is provided in
section 2.1.8.
Table 8: Call outcome, by time of the day and day of the week (Côte d’Ivoire)

SundayMondayTuesday

WednesdayThursdayFridaySaturdayCompleted interviews

Partial interviews

Refusals

Count

%

Count

%

Count

%

Morning

6

0%

0

0%

0

0%

Afternoon

41

3%

4

8%

1

9%

Evening

19

1%

0

0%

0

0%

Morning

42

3%

2

4%

0

0%

Afternoon

139

9%

7

13%

0

0%

Evening

39

3%

1

2%

0

0%

Morning

64

4%

1

2%

0

0%

Afternoon

218

15%

10

19%

1

9%

Evening

38

3%

2

4%

0

0%

Morning

48

3%

1

2%

0

0%

Afternoon

142

10%

6

11%

1

9%

Evening

31

2%

2

4%

0

0%

Morning

40

3%

1

2%

1

9%

Afternoon

150

10%

7

13%

1

9%

Evening

37

3%

0

0%

1

9%

Morning

72

5%

3

6%

0

0%

Afternoon

173

12%

4

8%

1

9%

Evening

19

1%

0

0%

0

0%

Morning

21

1%

1

2%

2

18%

Afternoon

97

7%

0

0%

2

18%

Evening

32

2%

1

2%

0

0%

9

Fifty-four per cent of the sample called were men and so screened out at the very beginning of the survey.
This is generally in line with the share of screened-out mens in the other Phase II countries, but higher thanmost of the Phase I countries. There is a big gender gap in mobile-phone ownership in the country, with men
being more likely than women to own a mobile device, at 91% versus 77%, respectively.13 Six of the
respondents were screened out because they were younger than 18 years, 11 because they did not want toparticipate, two because they did not understand fully the purpose of the survey, and three because they said
they did not understand the confidentiality measures.
Table 9: Screen-outs (Côte d’Ivoire)
Question

AnswerCount% of total answered

S3

Sex: Male

2,092

54%

S4_1+S4_2

Age: Below 18 years

6

0%

S1

Willing to participate: No

11

1%

S6

Understand purpose: No

2

0%

S7

Understand confidentiality: No

30%

The interview was temporarily discontinued in 72 cases because the respondent answered “no” to one of thefour ‘safety’ questions (listed in Table 10 below). This result in Côte d’Ivoire is in line with the number of
temporarily suspended interviews in Ukraine, but it is much higher than the numbers in Kenya (7),Bangladesh (6) and Jordan (6).
Table 10: Temporary interview suspension due to responses at safety questions (Côte d’Ivoire)
Question

AnswerCount% of total answered

S2

Can you let me know if the speaker phone is off? No

25

1.5%

S5

Can you confirm if now is a good time? No

3

0.2%

B01

Can you confirm that there is no one around you over the age of
two that can overhear our conversation? No

26

1.7%

C18

Alternatively, if someone over two is listening to our call or is nearby
that can hear, please say no. No

18

1.2%

Fifty-three respondents dropped out of the survey. The table below shows the questions at which the
dropouts occurred. The largest numbers of dropouts were at A12 (9), B02 (7), and S11 (5). Generally, highdropout rates were not observed at question A12 for other countries in the study, except Nigeria, where 17
respondents dropped out at the same question.

13 Ibid.

10

Table 11: Survey dropouts, by question (Côte d’Ivoire)
Question

Question text

No. of participants
dropped out% of total
dropouts

S11

Great. If you don’t have any further questions we canproceed. Now we just need a bit more information about you.
Would you consider the area you live in to be urban or rural?

5

9.4%

A01

What is your marital status?

3

5.7%

A06

How many people, including yourself, live in your household?

3

5.7%

A02

What is the highest level of education that you completed?

4

7,5%

A03

Which of the following best describes what you mainly doeach day…?

2

3.8%

A04_1

Would you say that the money that you earn is…

1

1.9%

A05

Do you have difficulty doing any of the following – walking,seeing (even when wearing glasses), hearing (even withhearing assistance), remembering or concentrating, selfcaring or communicating?

2

3.8%

A11

Has your household’s income changed at all since the onsetof the COVID-19 pandemic?

3

5.7%

A12

During the last month, was there a time when, because oflack of money or other resources, you or others in yourhousehold…

9

17.0%

B01

Thank you for your responses so far. I am now going to ask
you some questions related to your health. Before we begin
this section, can you confirm that there is no one around you
over the age of 2 that can overhear our conversation?

1

1.9%

B02

I would now like to ask you some questions about yourthoughts and feelings since the onset of the COVID-19
situation. How often have you been bothered by thefollowing problems since the onset of the COVID-19
situation? Please answer with: not at all, several days, morethan half the days, or nearly every day.

7

13.2%

B04

Overall, would you say your own mental or emotional health(e.g., stress, anxiety, confidence, etc.) has been affected AS A
RESULT OF THE COVID-19 SITUATION?

3

5.7%

C02

To what extent, if at all, do you feel safe when walking alone
during the day in the area where you live?

1

1.9%

C04

How, if at all, has your feeling of safety while walking alone
at night changed SINCE THE ONSET OF COVID-19?

1

1.9%

11

Question

Question text

No. of participants
dropped out% of total
dropouts

C07

To what extent do you think that physical harm, abuse, orharassment of women is a problem in the area where you
live?

1

1.9%

C08

How, if at all, do you think physical harm, abuse, orharassment of women in the area where you live havechanged SINCE COVID-19?

1

1.9%

C10

How common do you think this type of situation is for
women in the area where you live?

3

5.7%

C13

Who would [Scripter: insert Female name] most likely seek
help from?

1

1.9%

C14

How common do you think this type of situation is for
women in the area where you live?

1

1.9%

C30

Now I’m going to ask you about some situations that you or
any other women you know may have experienced. For eachsituation, please tell if you or any other women you know
have experienced this only before the start of COVID-19, only
since the start of COVID-19, both before and since the start of
COVID-19, or not at all. Please listen carefully and just answer“yes” or “no” for each question I ask.

1

1.9%

Total

53

100%

As previously explained and as part of the safety protocols, respondents were given a safe word, a specificpopular local food (PLF), that they could use if they were disturbed by a third party or otherwise felt unsafe
at any point during the interview. In Côte d’Ivoire, the food used in the questionnaire was “Attiéké”. It wasused 52 times during the course of fieldwork. The table below shows the questions at which this occurred.
Table 12: Use of popular local food, per question (Côte d’Ivoire)
Question

Question text

PLF mentioned

S11

Great. If you don’t have any further questions we can proceed. Now we just need a
bit more information about you. Would you consider the area you live in to be urban
or rural?

10

S6

Do you understand that this information is being collected by [SURVEY FIRM NAME]
for UN Women so we can better understand the needs of women in yourcommunity and to help develop responses that improve wellbeing?

4

S7

Do you understand that your information will remain confidential and that you areable to go back to any of your responses and change and/or ask to delete any
information you provide?

1

12

Question

Question text

PLF mentioned

S12_NEW

And do you own the phone you are speaking on?

2

A01

What is your marital status?

1

A08

How many of the people living in your household are men aged 18 or over?

2

A02

What is the highest level of education that you completed?

3

A04_1

Would you say that the money that you earn is…

2

A05

Do you have difficulty doing any of the following – walking, seeing (even when
wearing glasses), hearing (even with hearing assistance), remembering orconcentrating, self-caring, or communicating?

1

A11

Has your household’s income changed at all since the onset of the COVID-19
pandemic?

2

A12

During the last month, was there a time when, because of lack of money or otherresources, you or others in your household…

4

B02

I would now like to ask you some questions about your thoughts and feelings since
the onset of the COVID-19 situation. How often have you been bothered by thefollowing problems since the onset of the COVID-19 situation? Please answer with:not at all, several days, more than half the days, or nearly every day.

1

B04

Overall, would you say your mental or emotional health (e.g., stress, anxiety,confidence, etc.) has been affected as a result of the COVID-19 situation?

1

C03

To what extent, if at all, do you feel safe when walking alone at night in the area
where you live?

1

C07

How common do you think this type of situation is for women in the area where you
live?

4

C08

How common do you think this type of situation is for women in the area where you
live?

1

C11

Would you say the situation of COVID-19 has made conflict between adults in yourhousehold more frequent, less frequent or about the same?

2

C19

When people live together in the same household, they usually share both good andbad moments. And it is normal for people who live together to have arguments. How
often in the last six months would you say that adults in your household haveargued or have had some sort of conflict among themselves?

1

C21

In the last six months, did you ever feel unsafe in your home?

2

C23

Why do you feel unsafe in your home?

3

C30

Now I’m going to ask you about some situations that you or any other women you
know may have experienced. For each situation, please tell if you or any other
women you know have experienced this only before the start of COVID-19, only since
the start of COVID-19, both before and since the start of COVID-19, or not at all.
Please listen carefully and just answer “yes” or “no” for each question I ask.

3

C31

Are any of the following support services available for women in your community?

1

Total

52

13

In terms of item non-response (INR), this varied across the survey but was highest at the question on
respondents’ marital status (A01) (42.60%). The field team reported that it is not unusual for women
respondents in Côte d’Ivoire to refuse to provide details on their marital status. A high item non-response on
this question was observed among many of the countries in Phase II of the survey – though not during phase
I (the average item non-response for all four Phase I countries at A01 was less than 5%). Another question
with high INR was the one related to the services available for women in their communities (C31). This may
reflect a lack of knowledge among respondents of services available for women in their communities.
Additionally, in Côte d’Ivoire a relatively high INR was observed at the questions on physical harm, abuse andharassment of women in the area of the respondents (C07 and C08), as well as at the questions related to
the vignettes in the survey (C10, C11, C14, C15). Observations shared by the field team reveal that the higher
INR at these questions may have been influenced by the period of lockdown, when women in the country
were not able to discuss such issues with other family members, close friends or neighbours, which usually
happened during gatherings of several women. Since respondents were answering these questions based
not on their own experiences but on the experiences of other women, it may have been the case that they
were uncertain how to answer and were thus refusing to do so or indicated that they did not know theanswer.
Table 13: Item non-response (Côte d’Ivoire)
Question

Question text

Item nonresponse

A01

What is your marital status?

42.60%A07

How many of the people living in your household are aged 0–17?

1.20%

A08

How many of the people living in your household are men aged 18 or over?

0.80%

A02

What is the highest level of education that you completed?

0.50%

A03

Which of the following best describes what you mainly do each day…?

0.10%

A04

In addition to this, do you do any activity that generates an income, even if only
for a few hours a week?

0.10%

A04_1

Would you say that the money that you earn is…

3.70%

A05

Do you have difficulty doing any of the following – walking, seeing (even when
wearing glasses), hearing (even with hearing assistance), remembering orconcentrating, self-caring, or communicating?

0.10%

A11

Has your household’s income changed at all since the onset of the COVID-19
pandemic?

2.70%

A12_1

During the last month, was there a time when, because of lack of money or otherresources, you or others in your household… 1.
were worried you would nothave enough food to eat?

0.70%

A12_2

During the last month, was there a time when, because of lack of money or otherresources, you or others in your household… 2.
were unable to eat healthy andnutritious food?

1.20%

A12_3

During the last month, was there a time when, because of lack of money or otherresources, you or others in your household… 3.
ate only a few kinds of food?

1.20%

14

A12_4

During the last month, was there a time when, because of lack of money or otherresources, you or others in your household… 4.
had to skip a meal?

1.00%

A12_5

During the last month, was there a time when, because of lack of money or otherresources, you or others in your household… 5.
ate less than you thought you
should?

1.00%

A12_6

During the last month, was there a time when, because of lack of money or otherresources, you or others in your household… 6.
ran out of food?

0.90%

A12_7

During the last month, was there a time when, because of lack of money or otherresources, you or others in your household… 7.
were hungry but did not eat?

0.80%

A12_8

During the last month, was there a time when, because of lack of money or otherresources, you or others in your household… 8.
went without eating for awhole day?

0.90%

B02_1

I would now like to ask you some questions about your thoughts and feelings
since the onset of the COVID-19 situation. How often have you been bothered by
the following problems since the onset of the COVID-19 situation? Please answer
with: not at all, several days, more than half the days, or nearly every day. 1. Not
being able to stop or control worrying

0.70%

B02_2

I would now like to ask you some questions about your thoughts and feelings
since the onset of the COVID-19 situation. How often have you been bothered by
the following problems since the onset of the COVID-19 situation? Please answer
with: not at all, several days, more than half the days, or nearly every day. 2.
Having little interest or pleasure in doing things

0.70%

B02_3

I would now like to ask you some questions about your thoughts and feelings
since the onset of the COVID-19 situation. How often have you been bothered by
the following problems since the onset of the COVID-19 situation? Please answer
with: not at all, several days, more than half the days, or nearly every day. 3.
Feeling down, depressed or hopeless

0.90%

B04

Overall, would you say your own mental or emotional health (e.g., stress, anxiety,confidence, etc.) has been affected AS A RESULT OF THE COVID-19 SITUATION?

0.70%

C02

To what extent, if at all, do you feel safe when walking alone during the day inthe area where you live?

1.80%

C03

To what extent, if at all, do you feel safe when walking alone at night in the area
where you live?

7.80%

C04

How, if at all, has your feeling of safety while walking alone at night changed
SINCE THE ONSET OF COVID-19?

4.20%

C07

To what extent do you think that physical harm, abuse, or harassment of womenis a problem in the area where you live?

17.40%

C08

How, if at all, do you think physical harm, abuse, or harassment of women in thearea where you live have changed SINCE COVID-19?

21.70%C10

How common do you think this type of situation is for women in the area where
you live?

18.20%

C11

Would you say the situation of COVID-19 has made things better, worse or thesame for [Scripter: insert Female name] from this story?

10.20%15

C12

Do you think [Scripter: insert Female name] would seek help for this situation?

3.20%

C13

Who would [Scripter: insert Female name] most likely seek help from?

1.20%

C14

How common do you think this type of situation is for women in the area where
you live?

17.40%

C15

Would you say the situation of COVID-19 has made things better, worse or thesame for [Scripter: insert Female name] from this story in terms of her feelings ofsafety?

11.60%C16

Do you think [Scripter: insert Female name] would seek help for this situation?

3.30%

C17

Who would [Scripter: insert Female name] most likely seek help from?

1.30%

C19

When people live together in the same household, they usually share both goodand bad moments. And it is normal for people who live together to havearguments. How often in the last six months would you say that adults in yourhousehold have argued or have had some sort of conflict among themselves?

2.00%

C20

Would you say the situation of COVID-19 has made conflict between adults inyour household more frequent, less frequent or about the same?

6.50%

C21

In the last six months, did you ever feel unsafe in your home?

0.80%

C22

Would you say the situation of COVID-19 has made things better, worse or thesame in terms of how safe you feel in your home?

1.90%

C23_1

Why do you feel unsafe in your home? 1. I have a serious medical condition or
disability and feel vulnerable

0.10%

C23_2

Why do you feel unsafe in your home? 2. My shelter is insecure from external
threats (e.g., there are no locks on my front door)

0.20%

C23_3

Why do you feel unsafe in your home? 3. I am unable to communicate/reach out
for help

0.20%

C23_4

Why do you feel unsafe in your home? 4. I am living with people I cannot trust

0.10%

C23_5

Why do you feel unsafe in your home? 5. There is substance abuse (e.g., alcoholor drugs) in the household

0.10%

C23_6

Why do you feel unsafe in your home? 6. There is physical violence or threats ofphysical violence in my home

0.10%

C23_7

Why do you feel unsafe in your home? 7. There is verbal abuse in my home

0.10%

C23_8

Why do you feel unsafe in your home? 8. Other adults in the household havehurt me

0.10%

C23_9

Why do you feel unsafe in your home? 9. Other women in the household havebeen hurt

0.10%

C23_10Why do you feel unsafe in your home? 10. Children in the household have been
hurt

0.10%

C23_11

Why do you feel unsafe in your home? 11. Something else

0.40%

C24

How often, if at all, did you go out of your house by yourself in the last month?

0.20%

16

C25

Would you say the situation of COVID-19 has limited your interactions with yourfriends and social groups, such as seeing or speaking to them?

0.30%

C30_1

Now I’m going to ask you about some situations that you or any other women
you know may have experienced. For each situation, please tell if you or any
other women you know have experienced this only before the start of COVID-19,
only since the start of COVID-19, both before and since the start of COVID-19, or
not at all. Please listen carefully and just answer “yes” or “no” for each question I
ask.
1. Been slapped, hit, kicked, had things thrown at them, or other physical harm

4.80%

C30_2

Now I’m going to ask you about some situations that you or any other women
you know may have experienced. For each situation, please tell if you or any
other women you know have experienced this only before the start of COVID-19,
only since the start of COVID-19, both before and since the start of COVID-19, or
not at all. Please listen carefully and just answer “yes” or “no” for each question I
ask.
2. Been yelled at, called names, humiliated

4.00%

C30_3

Now I’m going to ask you about some situations that you or any other women
you know may have experienced. For each situation, please tell if you or any
other women you know have experienced this only before the start of COVID-19,
only since the start of COVID-19, both before and since the start of COVID-19, or
not at all. Please listen carefully and just answer “yes” or “no” for each question I
ask.
3. Had resources (like healthcare) or basic needs (like money, food, water, shelter)denied

4.90%

C30_4

Now I’m going to ask you about some situations that you or any other women
you know may have experienced. For each situation, please tell if you or any
other women you know have experienced this only before the start of COVID-19,
only since the start of COVID-19, both before and since the start of COVID-19, or
not at all. Please listen carefully and just answer “yes” or “no” for each question I
ask.
4. Been forced to stay alone for long period of time or denied communication
with other people

5.00%

C30_5

Now I’m going to ask you about some situations that you or any other women
you know may have experienced. For each situation, please tell if you or any
other women you know have experienced this only before the start of COVID-19,
only since the start of COVID-19, both before and since the start of COVID-19, or
not at all. Please listen carefully and just answer “yes” or “no” for each question I
ask.
5. Been the subject of inappropriate jokes, suggestive comments, leering, or
unwelcome touch/kisses

4.40%

C31_1

Are any of the following support services available for women in yourcommunity?
1. Information about security/crime prevention

27.50%

C31_2

Are any of the following support services available for women in yourcommunity?
2. Access to basic needs such as shelter, food, clothing

26.80%

17

C31_3

Are any of the following support services available for women in yourcommunity?
3. Medical support

22.80%

C31_4

Are any of the following support services available for women in yourcommunity?
4. Someone to talk to like professional mental health experts

30.00%

C31_5

Are any of the following support services available for women in yourcommunity?
5. Legal support or help in reporting the incident or dealing with police

26.40%

C31_6

Are any of the following support services available for women in yourcommunity?
6. Financial support

26.00%

S12

And as a final question, I would like to know if you have another mobile phone
number besides the one I am calling you on? IF YES: How many other mobile
phone numbers do you have?

2.20%

2.1.8 Field observations
This section describes the observations made by the field managers and interviewers in the course of
fieldwork. The observations relate to the most productive days for fieldwork; the main reasons for refusal totake part in the survey; challenges reaching certain age groups; and the clarity of terms, concepts andquestions, among other topics. The observations effectively complement the fieldwork statistics included in
the previous section, providing a more nuanced picture of the fieldwork experience.
• According to the field team, in the first weeks of the fieldwork Friday and weekends were the mostproductive days of the week to reach respondents. In the latter part of the fieldwork, all days except
Sundays were indicated as productive in reaching respondents. As far as the most suitable time of
day to reach respondents was concerned, the interviewers observed that the late afternoon andevenings were a better time to call women as they were more available.
• The main reason for refusals to take part in the survey was the length of the interview.
• In Côte d’Ivoire, the 50–59 and the 60+ age groups were less represented in the RDD sample frame.
The field team also observed that older respondents (over 60) were more likely to get tired in the
middle of the interview (mentioning that it was hard for them to hold the phone for such a longtime), which necessitated the setting of follow-up appointments. Towards the end of the fieldwork,
the local team observed that the use of the RDD sample alone would not be sufficient to meet the
50–59 and 60+ age groups quotas despite the extension of the fieldwork. Therefore, with thepermission of the UN Women team and after careful review, the team in Côte d’Ivoire supplemented
the RDD sample with leads from a contact database compiled from previous surveys conducted in
the country. The database consisted entirely of mobile phone numbers, and the selection of thesenumbers was performed at random for all age groups in order to match the original design of thestudy.
• Given the circumstances at the time of conducting the survey (unstable public health situation due
to the COVID-19 pandemic) the telephone data-collection method was perceived as appropriate.

18However, given the high rate of unanswered phone numbers, which came as a result of a smaller
share of individual mobile phones and higher share of mobile SIM card subscriptions, and the
difficulty in reaching older age groups (60+) via phone, a face-to-face approach may ultimately bebetter for fieldwork in Côte d’Ivoire, should the public health conditions allow it.
In terms of observations relating to the survey questionnaire:• Regarding reactions to more sensitive questions, the field team reported that some of the
respondents took longer to answer or lowered their voice whenever they were asked about indirect
experiences of violence against women, or when referring to such experiences that took place intheir neighbours’ households.
• The respondents who used the popular local food safety word generally did so correctly, that is, toindicate that their privacy or safety has been compromised.

2.1.9 Lessons learned and recommendations
This section draws upon the fieldwork statistics and observations outlined in the previous sections to provide
recommendations for future surveys on violence against women in Côte d’Ivoire. Specifically, whether
remote data collection can be considered as an appropriate approach to develop an evidence base on
perceptions and incidence.
• CATI and the single-frame cell phone RDD design enabled the target number of interviews to beachieved, so the method could be considered for future surveys. However, certain age groups (18–29,
50–59, and 60+) and those living in certain regions (Bas-Sassandra, Gôh-Djiboua, Lacs, Lagunes,
Montagnes, Sassandra-Marahoué, Savanes, Vallée du Bandama, Woroba, Zanzan) were moredifficult to reach than other groups with the RDD sample. This should be reflected in the time
dedicated to active data collection in future surveys with age- and region-based quotas. A longer
fieldwork period would also help to address the fact that despite the high rate of mobile
subscriptions in Côte d’Ivoire, the number of unique subscribers (i.e., people who own a mobile
phone) is lower. It is commonplace for people to own a SIM card which is not constantly inserted in a
mobile device, thus leading to a lot of numbers that remain unanswered over several calling
attempts. Conducting more call attempts (over the minimum of three required for the study) was
needed to reach respondents in the RDD sample in Côte d’Ivoire.
• Given the high rates of unanswered numbers in the RDD sample, a face-to-face approach may
ultimately be more effective for fieldwork in Côte d’Ivoire, should the public health conditions allow
it. In the case of a face-to-face approach, a longer fieldwork period would be absolutely necessary
owing to the extra time required for physical visits to prospective respondents’ homes.
• Given the field team’s observations that Sundays were relatively unproductive for fieldwork werecommend that more of the interviewing effort should be concentrated during the weekdays.
Additionally, given that afternoons and the early evening hours proved to be a good time to reach
respondents, distributing the calling times of the interviewers into shifts is advisable so that more
hours of the day can be covered, while at the same time remaining mindful of the need to avoid
skewing the sample by interviewing only the most easy-to-reach women.
• Almost 43% of the respondents did not answer the question asking about their marital status (A01).
The issue was also evident to varying degrees across most of the other Phase II countries. As
mentioned previously, the wording of the answer options to A01 was adjusted in Phase II of the19study and this may in part have contributed to the higher item non-response rate observed. This
point notwithstanding, generally the researchers would recommend placing potentially sensitivesociodemographic questions like marital status towards the end of a survey (rather than at the
beginning as was the case in the Rapid Gender Assessment Survey), by which point some rapport will
have been built between the interviewer and the respondent, making it easier for the interviewer toobtain an answer to the question.
• Given the use of languages in which respondents and interviewers had speaking fluency but noactual ability to write, the researchers recommend supplementing the written interviewer manualwith audio recordings of translation of parts or the entire questionnaire in these languages. In
addition to this, it is recommended that a special part of the interviewer training be dedicated toproviding instructions on the use of unified terminology and explanations of key terms andexpressions in the survey.

20© 2022 UN Women. All rights reserved.
The views expressed in this publication arethose of the author(s) and do not necessarily
represent the views of UN Women, the United
Nations or any of its affiliated organizations.
Produced by the Women Count programme
Research partner: Ipsos
Editor: Jen Ross
Design: Ouissal Hmazzou

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