Kenyan Woman Issue 41 by African Woman & Child Feature Service

Issue Number 41 • October 2013

Credit finance a critical bottleneck

Lack of collateral undermines implementation of procurement quotas …By Faith Muiruri

ven as the Government rolls out procurement quotas valued at KSh200 billion for women, youth and persons living with disabilities, lack of credit finance is emerging as a critical bottleneck that may upset the noble opportunity. And although President Uhuru Kenyatta has urged financial institutions to extend credit to the youth, women and persons with disability to enable them finance their tenders, majority lack collateral that will help them go for loans. According to Ann Waiguru, Cabinet Secretary for Devolution, already tenders below KSh500,000, have been ring-fenced for enterprises owned by women, youth and persons with disability.

Statistics Waiguru notes that the Ministry is currently working with the national Treasury to mobilise and register enterprises run by youth, women and persons with disability for prequalification in order to supply a minimum of 30 percent of all tenders in government.

However, statistics indicate that only one per cent of women and youth own property and that makes it very difficult for them to provide collateral for banks to give them access to credit facilities. Most women and youth who venture into businesses and need financing lack the needed collateral to enable them secure bank loans. Further, to obtain loans, banks require that the enterprises show credit records. Unfortunately majority of this marginalised groups of people do not fully understand the requirements of getting and paying loans. Loans from Kenyan microfinance institutions tend to be limited in amount, have no grace period, are short term in design and carry very high interest rates.

Scheme Formal financial support on the other hand is seen to be too expensive for many women and youth entrepreneurs and hence they treat this as a last resort. The Kenya Women Parliamentary Association (KEWOPA) has voiced concern over the lack of resources saying that whereas the preferential provision is a great beginning, there is

All members of KEWOPA will be actively involved in championing the procurement and Uwezo Fund initiatives.

EDITORIAL

 Cecil Mbarire.

here is no doubt that most Kenyans are very enterprising going by the number of chamas (investments clubs) that have mushroomed across the country over the years. It is normal these days to see groups of women and men both in the urban, rural and informal settlements like Nairobi’s Kibera, Mathare and Korogosho spend part of their weekend meeting around a table in their respective homes, neighbourhhood pubs, restaurant or hotels to contribute towards a merry-goround savings scheme that have become very popularly. They are also called table banking schemes. The initiative that was started by a handful of women several decades ago has now taken a life of its own and has been embraced by the youth and men with the support of micro-based enterprises, leading banks and even the Kenya Government. No longer do the chamas have to plead with bank managers to open accounts for them and

President Uhuru Kenyatta is given an illustration about some products supplied to the Defence Ministry by a young woman entreprenuer Taby Rose Wanja at the official opening of the Women, Youth and Persons with Disability Expo on Access to Government Procurement Opportunities at K.I.C.C, COMESA Grounds. Looking on is Defence Cabinet Secretary Ambassador Raychelle Omamo. need for caution. Speaking during the official launch of the 30 per cent affirmative action of Government procurement for women, youth and persons with disabilities at KICC, Cecily Mbarire, chairperson KEWOPA says that the Government must come up with a National Credit Guarantee Scheme to ensure that only disadvantaged groups access opportu-

nities to do business with government. “We are asking the Government through the three funds — UWEZO, youth and women — to come up with a National Credit Guarantee Scheme so that the targeted groups are able to finance the tenders,” reiterated Mbarire. She added: “This will ensure that beneficiaries get money through their Local Purchase Orders (LPOs), supply

and pay back the money.” At the same time, Mbarire noted that most of the procurement opportunities earmarked under the quota include supply of flowers and stationery, sweeping and bush clearing. “While this is a good beginning, do not make them the only available Continues on page 4

DEVOLVE FUNDS WITH A DIFFRENCE give them loans, the tables have now been literally turned and it is the managers who are wooing them at all costs. It is in that spirit that the Government led by President Uhuru Kenyatta, launched the ambitious Shs5 billion Uwezo Fund targeting women and the youth who have over years complained of being sidelined and discriminated against by most financial institutions and the Government. The days of the mama mbongas (vegetablesellers) and jua-kali artisans (hot sun artisans) lamenting forever over lack of access to funds are now over and time has come for the thousands of unemployed and/or small scale women and youth traders to literally roll up their sleeves and get to work by coming up with creative, practical and exciting business proposals that will make them make a breakthrough in the competitive business world. They have felt shortchanged in the past by politicians during electioneering campaigns promising them haven and delivering nothing

tangible. The women and youth now have a golden opportunity to turn their dreams into a reality by forming themselves into groups, for those who had not, coming up with a business proposal and then applying for the said funds. And they need not look too far to emulate best practices by the most successful chamas whose members have gone places by learning from success stories of clients of such icons in the financial sector as Kenya Commercial Bank, Equity Bank, Co-operative Bank, KRep, Jami Bora and the Kenya Women Finance Trust among others. Unlike previous devolved funds like the popular Constituency Development Fund, the Youth Empowerment Fund and the Women’s Development Fund, the Uwezo Fund seeks to make a bigger impact on the youth and the women by releasing a maximum of Sh0.5 million per group to venture into any business of their choice. And in order to enhance transparency and accountability, the final cheque would be issued in public to avoid controversy, corruption and

politicisation of the noble project. All applicants must be in a registered group and be vetted by Uwezo Fund Committee whose patron in each of the 47 Counties will be the respective women representative to the National Assembly , elected in the March 4 General Elections. The other criterion is that the group’s business proposal must be viable and the members must have the ability to refund the loan within four months. So far so good, the programme has taken off smoothly and all eyes are on the second phase of implementation which might not be as straightforward. One area to watch is the presidential directive to all Government departments to reserve 30 per cent of government procurement for the youth, women and people with disabilities. Indeed, this devolved fund has come at the right time for most Kenyans of all walks of life to rally around it to promote unity, create jobs, boost the economy and give our thousands of jobless women and youth reason to eke a decent living and have some hope in a better Kenya.

Issue Number 41 • October 2013

Rwanda leads the world in female parliamentarians …By Roopa Gogineni

Gender empowerment to guide future development priorities

wanda maintained its lead among countries with high percentage of women representation in the world. A total of 26 women were directly elected in the just concluded General Election, in addition to the 24 seats reserved for women in the constitution. This figure accounts for unprecedented 64 per cent of seats in Rwanda’s parliament, more than any another country in the world. Connie Bwiza Sekemana has been a Member of Parliament since 2003, elected in the first legislative vote held after the genocide. “The issue is not about sex but equal opportunity and upholding fundamental rights for every citizen. Who brings what? It does not matter whether it is a woman or a man as long as they can deliver in their respective positions,” Sekemana explains. With a female majority in the legislature, Rwanda has been able to enact laws that empower women throughout the country. Sekemana and her peers have defied party differences to form a Forum of Women Parliamentarians.

Equality Last year, parliament amended a law to legalize abortion in cases of rape, incest or to protect the mother’s health. Sekemana notes the newly elected parliament will continue to focus on equality issues. “Among issues to be taken to account include gender violence and gender imbalance,” she says. A lecturer at the National University of Rwanda Christopher Kayumba has published a book on the impact that women representation has had on Rwanda’s parliament. He said the gender ratio speaks to the evolution of politics in Rwanda. “The old narrative was ethnicity that focused on Hutu-Tutsi politics. So the gender discourse has helped to shift the discourse away from the ethnic,” he observes. Kayumba says that while women candidates continue to enjoy support from the electorate, beyond the quotas, there has been a concerted political effort to promote women in politics. “Parties decide who goes on (the) party list of candidates, and in which order. So if political party leaders can decide to put women in winnable positions, it also says something about nature of political parties and leaders,” Kayumba observes.

Priority The Rwandan government, led by the Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF), has prioritised women’s representation and upheld provisions in the Constitution that demand that women hold 30 per cent of positions in all decision-making organs. Women played a significant role in the early days of the Rwanda Patriotic Front, born of the guerrilla army that brought an end to the genocide in 1994. A group of Rwanda Patriotic Front women fighters formed in exile in Uganda, Sekemana included, now occupy seats in parliament. The gender ratio in parliament reflects that of the greater population. The genocide dramatically changed Rwanda’s demographics. More men were killed during the violence, and more men currently are in prison for genocide related crimes. Courtesy Voice of America

…By Robert Nyagah

he Open Working Group on Sustainable Development Goal has been challenged to intensify efforts to address poverty by seriously focusing on women who comprise 51 per cent of the world’s population, but 70 per cent of the world’s poor. Dr. Musimbi Kanyoro, the President and chief executive officer Global Fund for Women says that with women clearly disadvantaged there was need to look at their issues more keenly. In a statement, Kanyoro argues that women own only one per cent of the world’s assets and earn a mere 10 per cent of the wages paid.

drafting of a set of goals that will guide development priorities for years to come. All facets of life, Kanyoro indicated need to be tackled given that “improvements in women’s education and health have been linked to better outcomes for

Goal The statement addressed to The Open Working Group on Sustainable Development Goal that met in New York says: “Improving the status of women is an important goal in its own right for it has significant benefits for families and communities.” Kanyiri noted that with the world to address the question of poverty reduction and protecting the environment for future generations, the question of women and their place in the world economy remains crucial. Created at last year’s Rio “Earth Summit”, the Open Working Group is quite important given that it has been charged with

“Improving the status of women is an important goal in its own right for it has significant benefits for families and communities.” Dr. Musimbi Kanyoro

A young woman entrepreneur displays her baskets at a market in Malindi. Many organizations and government institutions are now focusing more on women in order to reduce poverty in Kenya. Picture: ROBERT Nyagah

children”. She reiterated that women remain key partners in environmental protection given that they were often responsible for growing food as well as gathering water and fuel besides being endowed with an incentive to act as stewards of nature. “Women were not only on the frontline of coping with environmental crises but also took a lead role in finding creative solutions to many crises,” Kanyoro explained. She added: “If we truly want to realise sustainable development, women must have the means and the power to build a better world and that should include engaging them in decisionmaking at all levels apart from ensuring equal access to education, healthcare and opportunit.”

Efforts According to Kanyoro more efforts should be made to end harmful practices like child marriage and gender-based violence which sharply limit women’s horizons. “This means sustained efforts to ensure that all women have access to family planning and reproductive health services with the ability to decide whether and

when to have a child are need,” Kanyoro noted. She said that around 222 million women lack meaningful access to effective and modern methods of contraception. Kanyoro noted this has led to 80 million unplanned pregnancies, 30 million unplanned births and 20 million unsafe abortions annually. He points out that access would prevent 79,000 maternal deaths and more than one million infant deaths each year hence warning that as the Group drafts a new set of sustainable development goals, women’s rights and health must be given top priority. He laments that at the Rio Earth Summit, where the process of drafting sustainable development goals began, the issues never came forward as strongly as it had been anticipated. He said the 49-page Rio document mentioned women in less than 0.01 per cent of the entire text. Only two of the 283 sections addressed women’s needs for family planning. He hence challenges Prof Kamau who is at the helm to do better and establish as a forwardthinking set of goals that recognize the crucial contributions of women.

Issue Number 41 • October 2013

Women to influence gender responsive budgeting …By Faith Muiruri

he Kenya Women Parliamentar y Association (KEWOPA) plans to introduce a model that incorporates a gender equality perspective into the budgeting process. The model not only seeks to bridge persistent inequalities between women and men but also help to facilitate development by integrating gender issues into macroeconomic policy and budgets. According Priscilla Nyokabi, a member of KEWOPA and the Women Representative Nyeri County, the model is currently a success in Uganda where female members of Parliament and some male affiliate members have adopted a bi-partisan approach that has helped to influence the national budget to cater for gender perspectives.

Approach “The initiative is a success in Uganda and has helped to influence the national budget to cater for gender perspectives,” said Nyokabi. The Uganda Women Parliamentary Association (UWOPA) has been funded by the Government as well as development partners to drive the initiative. Speaking during a Gender Forum organised by the Heinrich Boll Stiftung Foundation dubbed Constructing Political Spaces: Making Quotas Work, Nyokabi noted that the model will help women parliamentarians address issues such as water and health which are pertinent when addressing inequalities in society. “We have requested the Presidency and Executive to consider funding KEWOPA to roll out the model,” she said. According to Nyokabi, KEWOPA will soon convene a series of consultative forums where women will be given an opportunity to push for genderspecific allocations. “The model does not involve creating separate budgets for women and girls, or simply increasing specific budget allocations directed to these groups. Instead, it involves collecting budget revenues and allocating expenditures that address persistent inequalities between women and girls as well as men and boys,” said Nyokabi who is also the vice chair of the Legal Affairs Committee in the National Assembly.

Perspective She noted that Gender Responsive Budgeting is a system that incorporates a gender equality perspective into the budgeting process and policies that underpin it in order to promote equality between women and men. The initiative is a boost to women representatives following widespread criticism that the increased number of women’s participation has not translated into influence. However, Nyokabi noted that the initiative will require support across

the board because currently the budget committee in the National Assembly comprises of only six women out of the 51 members. At the same time, she revealed that women representatives have worked on affirmative action Social Development Fund Bill to allow them to respond to development roles that have been ignored in the counties such as the issue of alcohol and drug abuse, adult education and light industries. She noted that women representation in the country remains low in comparison to other countries within the East African region. Rwanda leads the region and the world with 64 per cent representation, Tanzania 47, Uganda 35 with Kenya lagging behind at less than 20 per cent. “A society develops better and moves forward when led by both men and women. Our Kenyan society needs to do more to appreciate women’s leadership. There is still need for concentration and funding of women representation in high levels of decision making,” said Nyokabi adding “women MPs should be recognised, encouraged and supported”.

Legislation Article 27 (8) states that “The state shall take legislative and other measures to implement the principle that not more than two-thirds of the members of elective or appointive bodies shall be of the same gender.” This provision is about affirmative action for women, and has been broadened to include persons living with disability, youth, elderly as well as other minority and marginalised groups. Affirmative action has seen the rise of representation of women in parliament from 10 per cent in the last parliament to 20 per cent in the current

Parliament in session: Women parliamentarians plan to introduce a model that seeks to bridge persistent inequalities between men and women. Picture: Courtesy parliament. This provision is meant to fill the gender gap, which is very pervasive mostly in the public sphere. According to Nyokabi, despite women making up more than half the population of Kenya, they are still in the periphery when it comes to participating in political leadership and decision making process. “This has largely been blamed on retrogressive cultural practices, gender stereotyping, propaganda, lack of resources, electoral violence, lack of mentorship in political engagement, and poor media visibility,” she explained. At the moment, only 30 nations globally have been able to reach the 30 per cent women representation in parliament threshold, achieved through affirmative action. This creates space to allow more women to participate equitably in matters governance and policy. Affirmative action spurs democracy and opens up spaces for different voices to be heard. In Kenya, for instance, the affir-

mative action motion was first moved in 1997 by Phoebe Asiyo but was defeated. However, gains were made with the emergence of the new Constitution in 2010. This happened after many decades of clamouring for a new Constitution that would be all-inclusive to ensure equal participation by all members of society. In addition to the gains made in the women’s movement, affirmative action is a positive step in the right direction and with time, Kenya will be able to reach the critical mass of women required to create a balance between women and men, in the course of performing their defined roles. Speaking at the forum, Joy Mukanyange from Rwanda attributed the large numbers of women in leadership positions to the fact that affirmative action has been embraced by the ruling party where 64 per cent of MPs are women. On the other hand Bintu Jalia, a Member of Parliament from Uganda cited the constitutional provision on

"The initiative will require support across the board because currently the budget committee in the National Assembly comprises of only six women out of the 51 members." Priscilla Nyokabi

special district seats for women elected through universal suffrage which has helped to increase the number of women in Uganda’s parliament. This is similar to the position with the county MPs or women representatives in Kenya. “Women MPs in Uganda have also made sure all policies, bills and laws entrench gender perspectives,” Jalia said. She noted that several amendments in the constitution have seen the inclusion of the youth as a group that needs recognition.

Action In South Sudan, affirmative action was the brainchild of the late Dr John Garang who advocated for the inclusion of 25 per cent of women in any position of influence. Nyayang Lok, an MP from South Sudan told the forum that the youth have also been incorporated in political parties at all levels as an entry point into leadership. In Burundi, the involvement of women in the civil war led to inclusion of affirmative action in Governance. Jeannette Ntiranyibagira said that the country has 37 per cent women representation in government and the Women’s League is strong and meets regularly to push for the women’s agenda. Somaliland, a former British protectorate on the other hand, has enjoyed peace unlike her sister Somalia. However, Sadia Musse Ahmed said women representation remains low at 13 per cent with only four holding ministerial positions. She noted the women’s voice is respected in parliament and cited the last elections where ten young women were elected.

Issue Number 41 • October 2013

More women set to benefit from empowerment kitty

…By Carolyne Oyugi

ore money will be available to national civil society groups and governments working to advance women’s economic and political empowerment. The money will be made available through the United Nations Women Fund for Gender Equality which has set a goal of raising $20 million in the next financial year in order to reach more women in the world. This means that there will be an increase in national partners’ capacity in results-based management and program implementation. Speaking during a public event in Nairobi that was set to interact with the regional grantees, Elisa Fernandez, UN Women Fund for Gender Equality chief expressed concerns over the slow pace of women’s involvement in important decision making forums.

Changes “Many things have changed over the years but women’s problems are still the same. We are still missing where it matters especially in developing countries,” Fernandez said. She added: “Women dominate the list of the poorest people in the world and financial empowerment is one way of solving most of their problems.” Aligned to UN Women’s strategic plan, the fund has provided multi-year grants ranging from $100,000 to $3million directly to women’s organisations and governmental agencies to support their work as an essential part of poverty reduction and sustainable development. It also serves as a mechanism to contribute to the evidence base on innovative and high impact strategies for gender equality.

Addressing the grantees, Tacko Ndiaye from UN Women Regional Office for Eastern and Southern Africa urged women to strategically position themselves so as to grab opportunities that present themselves. “It is clear that our male counterparts are not just sitting and allowing us to occupy the positions as they watch. We, therefore, have to present ourselves for the competition. We also have to be knowledgeable and relevant in order to bring a difference once we get those positions,” reiterated Ndiaye. She noted that there are signs of good things coming considering the increased number of women who are getting elected to parliament and other government offices. “Kenya has increased its number of women parliamentarians and now everyone is waiting to see the difference it will make in Kenyan politics and development,” Ndiaye said adding that “it should not be just about quantity but quality”. She emphasized that it is important to have a peaceful environment where people live freely and women empowerment is given a chance. “Until women are economically empowered, they lack the capacity to stand on their own,” said Judy Thongori, a family lawyer and former Executive Director FIDA Kenya. Thongori, who gave the key note speech, noted that the society has allowed subjectivity in matters that affect women. “Despite the presence of laws that

support gender equality we are still dealing with an area where it is difficult to legislate,” Thongori pointed out. This she said is due to constant need to seek for the courts to interpret things because there are many grey areas. A good example, she noted, is in the land inheritance issue.

Challenges

“As much as the Constitution allows women to inherit land, there are other laws that allow someone to share their wealth as they so please. This, therefore, makes it hard to force someone to give the “Despite the presence daughter a piece of land as of laws that support he gives the sons,” Thongori observed. gender equality we are She noted that the still dealing with an courts are also not accessiarea where it is difficult ble to most women because it involves a lot of money to legislate.” which they already lack.  Judy Thongori “There surely must

A market woman displays smoked fish at a market currently patrolled by the UN Operation in San Pedro, Côte d’Ivoire. Picture: Courtesy UN women. exist another level that we can seek justice since the local channels have failed,” she pleaded. Thongori said it is important to find out where the genesis of gender discrimination started. “The family is the basis of the society according to the Constitution but it is also the source of social disorder,” she said. According to Thongori, values are taught at home before they come out to the society “and children are very observant so we must teach them while they are still young”. She also said that there is need to tackle cultural practices that promote gender discrimination. “You cannot free women until you free the society. Her sentiments were echoed by Cecil Mbarire, chairperson Kenya Women Parliamentarian (KEWOPA) who promised that the increased number of

women in the Kenyan parliament will result in many improvements both politically and in development. “We will make sure that the quantity of women in parliament equates to quality,” Mbarire said. The Fund for Gender Equality was created in 2009 in response to a crisis of implementation of gender equality laws and policies at local and national levels. It was specifically mandated to meet a growing demand by national machineries and women’s non-governmental organisations who were ready to assume a role as drivers of gender equality, but lacked the necessary resources and strategies to fast track commitments to gender equality, in line with national development strategies and aid effectiveness principles. Grantees from Africa had a chance to showcase their projects at the event.

Lack of collateral undermines implementation of procurement quotas Continued from page 1

procurement opportunities for women, youth and people living with disabilities in this country. The Government should not relegate us to only flowers, bush clearing and sweeping,” Mbarire reiterated. She added: “I believe we can do beyond bush clearing, I believe we can do roads, I believe we can construct buildings on behalf of this country. You must not limit our potential. If you allow us to do beyond the earmarked opportunities, who said that we cannot do a Thika Superhighway one day.” Mbarire noted that all members of KEWOPA will be actively involved in championing the procurement and Uwezo Fund initiatives. “We are going to open information kiosks in all our Constituencies and are hoping men can follow suit so that women, youth and people with disabilities can access the information at that level,” she affirmed. KEWOPA will also spearhead initiatives that seek to build the capacity of youth, women and persons with disabilities to ensure that they effectively participate in the 30 percent of Government tenders. “Many of the targeted groups do not know what the procurement process is about. There is need to engage them in terms of capacity building so that we can have more women access

the 30 percent provision,” she explains. KEWOPA will take advantage of digital collection of data to ensure that all government ministries and procurement entities follow the directive. “We expect that at the end of every financial year, we shall sit as KEWOPA, look at who has done what. We will name and shame those that fail to meet the 30 per cent preferential provision so that they may know disadvantaged groups have a right to participate in procurement,” said Mbarire. The President who presided over the launch also said he will closely monitor the allocation of the 30 per cent Government procurement to see exactly how many women, youth and persons with disability benefit. He affirmed his administration’s commitment to empowering women, youth and persons with disability to drive the country’s transformation agenda, saying doing so is empowering the whole society as they represent over 70 per cent of the country’s population.

“For far too long we have chara-cterised our women as people who are dependent. I want them to be people who we can depend on. Our youth were viewed as people who lacked vision and direction, I want to make them the engine that drives Kenya,” said Kenyatta.

Growth The President stressed that giving youth, women and persons with disability the opportunity to explore their potentials would accelerate the realization of the country’s development goals. He noted that if the 30 per cent procurement allocation to the youth, women and persons with disability was replicated in counties and in the private sector, poverty would significantly reduce in the country. He said young people should not be viewed with scepticism because they lack experience but given the opportunity to supply both minor and major goods and services to the Government. “We need to give the youth the op-

The ministry has deployed women and youth officers to all ministries, within the Central Policy and Planning Units to advise and monitor the implementation of the directive in their respective stations."  Anne Waiguru

portunity to exercise their abilities so that they can get the experience to fully participate in national development,” Kenyatta said. The President advised those who will benefit from the 30 per cent Government procurement initiative to promote local industry by buying goods locally. That way, he reiterated, the country would reap maximum benefit from the initiative. Waiguru noted that the Ministry has organised a series of forums to sensitise and train this category of entrepreneurs not only on the 30 per cent access to government procurement opportunities and tendering procedures but also on basic entrepreneurial skills and competencies required to grow enterprises. “We have lined up various training programmes throughout the country that are expected to kick off immediately. The trainings will equip youth, women and persons with disability with the requisite knowledge, skills, attitudes and competencies to spur their creativity and innovativeness for success,” she explained. Waiguru noted that the Ministry had organised an expo to provide the targeted groups with information to enable them take full advantage of such opportunities when they are created. She said that the expo serves to address this challenge and to demystify public procurement. “Through the expo, we intend to lay bare information

on opportunities that are available for doing business with government. It provides multiple solutions, by closing the loop with regard to business opportunities within government, the regulatory and institutional requirements required to take advantage of the same as well as opportunities for facilitation within the private sector. She said that the ministry has deployed women and youth officers to all ministries, within the Central Policy and Planning Units to advise and monitor the implementation of the directive in their respective stations. The move would also ensure that gender and youth issues are mainstreamed within all policies and programmes within the respective sector. The 30 per cent of public procurement accounts for approximately KSh200 billion worth of contracts. This translates to over KSh2 billion for general supplies and services; KSh10 billion for purchase of furniture and other general equipment; and another KSh2 billion for communication services amongst others. According to the Public Procurement and Disposal Reference and Reservations Amendment Regulations 2013, a procuring entity shall allocate at least 30 per cent of its procurement budget for the purposes of procuring goods, works and services from micro and small enterprises owned by youth, women and persons with disability.

Issue Number 41 • October 2013

Getting women owned business into supply chain makes business sense …By Kara Valikai

ompanies operating in emerging markets have been challenged to source from women-owned businesses to increase on their profit margins. The world market relies heavily on male-owned businesses. WE Connect International, a corporate-led non-profit organisation that certifies women-owned businesses around the world, estimates that on average less than one per cent of global corporate or government spend is on women-owned businesses in any country. This staggering gap between male and female businesses reminds us that women’s economic energy remains untapped and can be used for global growth. This gap is partially due to persistent challenges including discriminatory regulation, less access to education and societal norms.

Poverty In fact, women’s difficulty in achieving economic success is a big reason why women make up 70 per cent of the global poor. They have the highest rates of unemployment and underemployment, less access to credit, and are often not equally represented in public education and training programmes. In addition, women are often underrepresented in stakeholder discussions and political arena. Many private sector corporations, such as Walmart and Cisco, are taking on the challenge of improving the economic status of women. One of the primary ways that large companies can sustainably empower women is through supplier diversity and inclusion.

Supplier diversity is when a company actively promotes and develops the inclusion of minority and womenowned businesses in their procurement processes. Many businesses like Walmart, General Motors, IBM, Toyota, and Microsoft have been enormously successful with supplier diversity in the US — each company reaching more than a $1 billion per year on diverse procurement. Now, they are replicating the successes and lessons learned to other countries — linking women from all over the globe to their massive supply chains.

Diversity Many companies are setting ambitious targets for meeting these goals. Domestically Walmart plans to source $20 billion from women-owned businesses for its US business. Globally it plans to double its sourcing from women-owned businesses in its international markets over a five-year period ending in 2016. The global programme aims to expand supplier diversity to 26 countries. At the domestic level, Walmart has created a variety of tools to support women-owned suppliers. For example, Walmart is creating a set of training modules that teach womenowned businesses the requirements and processes for becoming a supplier to Walmart. Another example is Cisco, which was one of the earliest companies to understand the importance of supplier diversity, launching their programme more than 14 years ago. Cisco has set the goal of reaching 10 per cent of their procurement expenditures on diverse businesses. The company has successfully launched supplier diversity efforts in Australia, Canada, the United

Kingdom, China, India and South Africa. Similar to other companies, Cisco recognises that supplier diversity is not a one-size-fits-all strategy and has tailored its programmes to each country. There is a strong business case for investing in women. In a recent McKinsey and Company survey, 34 per cent of senior executives reported that a company’s efforts to empower women in emerging markets increased profits. An additional 38 per cent reported that they expect an increase in profits in the future. Walmart believes that empowering women economically is smart business for many reasons. Their Global Supplier Diversity Manager, Ellie Bertani, said: “It is important we build a business case for supplier diversity to ensure that our results are sustainable over the longterm.” She noted that there are multiple aspects to the business case. For starters, the majority of its 200 million customers are women. If Walmart includes more womenowned businesses in its supply chain, the company represents women both internally and externally. The company believes that women suppliers often know the needs of female customers and create products with women in mind. Also, estimates show that women-owned businesses tend to be growing at a faster rate than traditional suppliers. Walmart has the opportunity to capture the top-line growth opportunities in women-owned businesses through their supply chain. But challenges do exist. For starters, how do large corporations identify women-owned businesses that have or want to develop the capacity to meet the often high procurement standards of

A female run enterprise. Companies operating in emerging markets can increase their profit margins by sourcing from women-owned businesses. Photo: Arne Hoel, World Bank

large corporations? One answer is WE Connect’s global database of self-registered and certified women-owned businesses that have demonstrated a high capacity and potential to scale. WE Connect’s Chief Executive Officer, Elizabeth Vazquez, co-founded her non-governmental organisation to connect large corporations with small and medium-sized women-owned businesses, believing that it is both good for women and good for corporations.

Visibility “While women-owned businesses are almost invisible as suppliers to large organisations, women now make or influence the majority of consumer purchasing decisions around the globe,” Vazquez said. She added: “Smart corporations understand that incorporating women-owned enterprises into their

global supply chain is good business. It helps corporations anticipate and meet the needs of the market, while also building their brand with female buyers.” Vazquez says: “I would encourage other companies to explore their potential to include more women-owned businesses in their supply chain.” Each company will have a different business case and a different approach but there is plenty of evidence to suggest that investing in women is not only about supporting a consistently marginalized group, but also about capturing growth potential for the company. The next challenge will be for companies to work together and share their learning to ensure that womenowned businesses continue to receive better training and opportunities on a more equal playing field.

Women in Busia County rally support towards Sacco …By Leonard Acharry

omen in Busia County have registered a Sacco in a bid to boost their social and economic status in the society. The Busia County Women Entrepreneurs Savings and Credit Society (BUCOWESA) targets women in small scale businesses. "For a long time we have seen investors come and reap highly from local resources while we languish in poverty," says Pauline Maalo Nasirumbi who is a member of the Sacco adding that time has come for women to mobilise resources to help support projects in transport and hotel industries. The Sacco has members at locational level who make weekly contribution of Ksh 200 which has led to increased savings.

Unity Mrs Maalo says the Sacco will also serve as a conduit to mobilize women across the county and unite them ahead of the 2017 General Elections to enable them elect leaders amongst themselves.

"Through Mlolongo women Group in Bukhayo West ward, we managed to have Florence Ombima, elected to the county assembly and she is the only elected woman against thirty four elected men,” she explains. Local leaders led by the Busia County Executive Member for Trade, Tourism, Cooperatives and Industrialization Hillary Makhulu and Busia Deputy Commission John Cheruiyot lauded the move and pledged to support the women.

Values "I urge you to stick to your core values which will enable you to forge ahead and become self- reliant. You are the first investors and you are already millionaires,” stressed the DC who assured them of security and a conducive environment to conduct their business in Busia. Makhulu advised the members to elect officials with good managerial skills, observing that most challenges facing Sacco’s in Busia county are due to mismanagement," she said adding that members must be guided by track record when

electing their officials," he said. He warned that action will be taken against individuals who embezzle Sacco money. "Days when officials used to squander Sacco money are over and we have an auditor of-

fice who is mandated to monitor Sacco’s" Makhulu said Sacco’s should have clear records showing how they receive and spend money to avoid misappropriation of funds.

Busia County Women Entrepreneurs Savings and Credit Society chairlady Pauline Maalo receives registration certificate from the County's cooperative executive member Hillary Makhulu. Inset: Bucowesa members during their meeting at Busia stadium. Photos: Leonard Acharry

Issue Number 41 • October 2013

Women rally support towards a gender driven political party …By Faith Muiruri

he quest for gender parity has pushed women back to the drawing board to mobilise and organise themselves early in readiness for the next General Election. The women mainly drawn from different counties have resolved to form a woman driven political party to position themselves well in the political arena. Already a technical committee comprising of regional representatives of Maendeleo ya Wanawake Organisation (MYWO) has been established to work out the modalities of building the political party. According to Rukia Subow, chairperson MYWO, the proposed political party will not only ensure that candidates in future elections are nominated in a very objective, fair and balanced gender sensitive way but also ensure gender gains made through the Constitution are realised and its requirements strictly adhered to.

Discrimination “Although the Constitution obliges all political parties in the country to meet the gender parity requirements, a huge majority of political parties in the country have completely failed to effectively enforce gender equality in representation especially in leadership positions as stipulated by the constitution,” she explained during a meeting convened by the MYWO. The meeting brought together women from different counties who contested in the last General Election and lost to share their experiences. According to Subow, political parties that are perceived to be the largest and most popular across the nation are the worst and hardly comply with their policies and manifestos as far as gender parity is concerned in its leadership positions. She noted that the high nomination fees levied on candidates by bigger parties that could easily propel women to office and the high stakes of party bigwigs also present a hurdle.

Study A recent study conducted by the Centre for Multi-Party Democracy revealed that only a negligible percentage of women occupy party leadership positions from the grassroots to national levels while the constitution documents that at least a third of leadership positions should be taken by women. The Centre for Multi-Party Democracy says that the culture of excluding women from top positions is so rampant that it spreads all the way through to parliament where their membership comprises only 20 per cent. The civil service has not been spared this discrimination either. The Elections Act fails to provide a formula for realizing gender representation threshold as clearly stipulated by the Constitution. “The Elections Act fails to include a formula

on how to realize the two-thirds gender threshold,” noted Kenneth Kogutu, a programme officer with Women Political Alliance. He said that political parties’ bigwigs that have penchant for frequently making strong public pronouncements as far as affirmative action and gender parity are concerned, ganged to mutilate the Elections Act prior to the last General Election. “This dashed hopes to provide a formula for realizing the gender representation threshold as clearly stipulated by the Constitution,” said Kogutu.

Constitution The Constitution of the Republic of Kenya 2010 article 27 (8) clearly states that: “The state shall take legislative measures to implement the principle that no more than two-thirds of the members of the elective or appointed bodies shall be of the same gender.” The Centre for Multi-Party Democracy states that there is a major disconnect between what the country’s political parties and leaders verbally or by written word promise and the reality in practice as far as gender parity is concerned. “At the party level, there should be established mechanisms for monitoring parties and holding them accountable to the gender parity promises,” says Njeri Kabeberi, Executive Director Centre for Multi -Party Democracy. According to Kabeberi, members of political parties must hold their respective political parties to account as far as lack of commitment to their policies is concerned and that members of political parties who are women should insist on getting senior positions instead of being left to occupy only positions slated for women – like party women or youth leaders. “When it comes to the national level, political parties should make their documents public particularly as far as gender positions are concerned,” says Kabeberi, noting that this is a matter that for decades has been a mirage with all political parties being culprits. Speaking separately Rebecca Kitana who contested and lost the Kangundo Parliamentary seat notes that most women who contested during the last elections were locked out shortly after the nominations because of the very limited time they had to join other parties since deadline had lapsed. “Party primaries were largely a process of complying with the law and hence in most

Rukia Subow, the chairperson of Maendeleo Ya Wanawake Organization. She is fronting for a women driven political party to ensure that female candidates in future elections are nominated in a very objective, fair and balanced gender sensitive way. instances the due process was not adhered to. The fundamental principles of fair representation and opportunity to exercise the right to vote were not observed,” Kitana points out. She says that cases of malpractices, manipulation, party loyalties bordering nepotism and reward of sycophants are still rampant and these affect the outcome of the vote. “The nomination process unearthed a weak element in the management of internal party processes and weak internal party democracy,” observes Kitana. She says that the few women candidates who managed to be in the ballot were forced to contest in parties that had less political appeal across

“Although the Constitution obliges all political parties in the country to meet the gender parity requirements, a huge majority of political parties in the country have completely failed to effectively enforce gender equality in representation especially in leadership positions.” Rukia Subow

the country which did not guarantee or even increase their chances of being elected to various political offices. “They also had to contend with threats and intimidation by rowdy and drunk youth who were forcing women to vote male aspirants,” she said. Participants during the meeting said that incidents of violence were perpetrated by rowdy male youth and the victims were women. One of the participants who contested as a ward representative says she was attacked by rowdy youth and her house demolished on allegations that she was supporting another political party. Women from pastoralist communities said that they had to seek approval of clan elders who endorsed candidates in respective seats. They accused the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission of failing to exercise its constitutional mandate and being complacent in the face of numerous malpractices during the electioneering period. Subow at the same time urged women leaders to take advantage of the opportunities in the counties and cited the county public service boards where they can utilise their expertise.

Mentorship programme targets women aspiring for leadership …By Valentine Atieno

he Women Shadow Parliament (WSP) plans to develop mentorship programmes for women who are willing to join leadership positions. According to Monica Amollo, Executive Director Shadow Parliament, the initiative will tap on the expertise of women who have previously held leadership positions to make the plan a success. “Currently most women are being co-opt-

ed into leadership by virtue of political favouritism, patronage and cronyism and cannot, therefore, participate meaningfully because they had no aspirations for leadership,” Amollo said at a workshop organized by Women Shadow Parliament on gender and governance. She cited the recent nomination to counties in Busia and Homa Bay that were marred by irregularities with female nominees being linked to MPs or women representatives. The 80 women comprising of 23 members of Busia County Assembly and 17 from Homa

Bay County vowed to bury their political differences and work together to improve the counties. According to Emma Oketch, a lecturer at the Institute of Diplomacy and International Studies, University of Nairobi, there is need to mentor new county assembly members to enable them discharge their duties effectively. “Women who have previously served in leadership positions can help new entrants to push for the gender agenda and empower others,” said Oketch.

She noted that women have been denied positions in critical committees within assemblies and confined to committees that have a feminine tag such as child labour, culture and gender. She noted that women should challenge such positions as they are equally qualified to chair committees perceived as powerful such as public accounts. “Women are mostly pushed to private domain while men are out there connecting with the public directly,” Oketch said.

Issue Number 41 • October 2013

Women and the Kenyan constitution

…By Duncan Mboyah

enya’s new constitution became operational in the year 2010 and created opportunities for both gen-

ders. The constitution demonstrates several gains for the women of Kenya, including stronger protections for their health and lives. It affirms that every person has the right to the highest attainable standard of health, including the right to health services and reproductive healthcare. It also ensures that a person shall not be denied emergency medical treatment, which includes necessary medical treatment for women seeking post-abortion care or emergency abortion services, regardless of their ability to pay for such services. It has also made it possible for women to have rights to matrimonial property. Under Kenya’s previous law, inheritance was governed by customary law, often preventing women from inheriting property from their parents or laying claim to joint assets when their husbands’ died. A new Bill of Rights also provides that all marriages shall be registered under an Act of Parliament. This means that even customary law marriages will be certified, protecting women’s interests in disputes between a widow and her in-laws over property. In the new dispensation, all marriages will be officially registered. Women will also be protected from claims by other women who turn up following a man’s death, claiming to have been married to the same man under customary law and demanding a share of his estate – a common occurrence. Despite being 50 percent of the population, women’s needs are rarely reflected in the overall national policy because they do not feature in key decision making positions that distribute power and resources nationally. The new structure of devolution should also benefit women as national budgets are brought closer to the people: a minimum of 15 percent of the national budget will now be allocated

at a local level. Even though several commissions like the Constitution Implementation Commission (CIC) were formed to help monitor, facilitate, coordinate and oversee the development of the legislation and administrative procedures required to implement the Constitution, a lot still needed to be done as their term comes to an end.

Implementation CIC is required to oversee the proper implementation of the devolution process and also protect the sovereignty of the people, to secure the observance by all state organs of democratic values and principles and to promote constitutionalism. According to a member of the commission Ms. Catherine Muma most government officials and County officials are university graduates but unfortunately they do not know what the new law stipulates. “Since the commission is coming to end in 2015, it’s is the responsibility of the government and universities to take up leading role by creating awareness to the public,” she observed during a sensitisation meeting at the University of Nairobi. Muma said that Kenyans voted for devolution because they felt that the central system of governance was not serving them equally as patriarchal and tribal alliance took a leading role in decision making when it came to sharing of resources. She however noted that the Major achievement that the constitution gave women is coming up with equality between all men and women to opportunities in political, social, economic, and cultural spheres. “It is not only marriage law that women achieved but women too are beneficiary in other areas such as land,” she added. She challenged the citizens to help monitor the implementation of the constitution adding that everyone has a role to play by ensuring that decisions are made in regard to the constitution. She appealed to the Supreme and Appeal courts to liase in ensuring that sections of the law that require

University rallies behind girl child education in mentorship programme

…By Isaiah Gwengi

he Jaramogi Oginga Odinga University of Science and Technology (JOOUST) is set to establish a mentoring programme that seeks to promote girl child education in the region. According to the Director of Centre for Gender Mainstreaming and Development at the institution, Dr Maria Onyango, the programme which is a brainchild of the university’s Vice Chancellor Prof Steven Agong’ is geared towards promoting girl-child education to enable them compete effectively globally. “The University will engage in capacity building programmes which will serve as agents of change in the society,” disclosed Onyango. Speaking at the University when marking the International Day of the Girl Child, Onyango described girl child education as a basic human right to help them chart the way to a successful and productive future. She noted that despite the constitutional requirement on two thirds gender representation in both appointive and elective positions, there are no adequate numbers of women to fill such positions. “Lack of access to quality education is a major determinant of poverty and ignorance in the society,” she said.

women participation in political leadership are followed to the letter.

Oversight The Cabinet Secretary for Devolution Ms. Anne Waiguru revealed that the government has deployed gender officials in all ministries and departments with the aim of ensuring that citizens gets proper services as is stipulated in the constitution. She noted that the ministry is currently collecting data and is in the

"Most government officials and County officials are university graduates but unfortunately they do not know what the new law stipulates." Ms. Catherine Muma

process of setting up sexual and gender centres to offer medical and legal support to women who are violated. Waiguru called on the University of Nairobi (UoN) to spearhead evidence based research to advice the government on how best to implement the constitution since many people are still thinking as per the old constitution. She told county and national government officials to follow the laid

down governance structures in the constitution while giving services to the people. According to Ms. Priscilla Nyokabi, Women Representative for Nyeri County, Kenya Women Parliamentarians have developed marriage and matrimony bills that are expected to be passed by parliament soon.

Change Nyakabi revealed that following the new constitution, five women are currently chairing parliamentary committees, something that was unthinkable in the old governance order. She said that through Kenya Women Parliamentary Association (KEWOPA), the elected women leaders have vowed to ensure that the number of women legislators increase from the current 85 during the coming general elections. “We have come from far but we still have to work hard to ensure that more women are elected in parliament to help change laws in favour of all genders in this country,” she observed. Prof. Isaac Mbeche, the University’s Deputy Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs observed that the universities in Kenya and the region must help shape national and regional development through research. He said that UoN is ready to help in ensuring that that Kenya’s constitution 2010 is understood by all citizens. Prof. Mbeche called for the implementation of affirmative action as it is enshrined in the constitution as a way of empowering women in all aspects of life. “Research has revealed that women led institutions develops faster than those that are led by men adding that more women need to be given positions of leadership,” he added. The new constitution has given women opportunities in areas such as women and citizenship, women, equality and freedom from discrimination, women and rights to property and women and affirmative action.

GBV centre established in Kisumu …ANGELA OKETCH

ore than 500 survivors of Gender Based Violence within Nyanza and beyond are set to benefit from an established Gender Based Violence Recovery Centre in Kisumu. The Centre based at the Jaramogi Oginga Odinga Teaching and Referral Hospital (JOOTRH) is the first in Nyanza and Western region and will provide comprehensive care services to the victims. The one stop Centre will see survivors receive medical, psycho-social and legal services. In an interview, Kisumu County Director for Social Development Jane Obiero said that the centre comes at an opportune moment following reports that Nyanza and Western have the highest rates of gender-based violence (GBV) cases in Kenya. “Kisumu County government plans to come up legislation, raise awareness and engage in advocacy as well as provision of post sexual violence services in health facilities,” said Ms Obiero. She said the Gender Technical Working Group (GTWG) has come up with an integrated and comprehensive way of addressing GBV in the County. “Gender Based violence (GBV) has been recognized as a serious global health, human rights and developmental issue worldwide and thus should be accorded attention by the county government as well,” she said. “Lack of integrated medical-legal services and community ownership of services has been identified as a challenge in addressing GBV coupled with the fact that there are few programmes that provide integrated care for survivors of GBV in Kenya,” said Ms Obiero. She added that the Gender Based Violence Recovery Centre was constructed with support from KEMRI/CDC who funded construction of the building and hired interim staff for a year at a cost USD 200,000. Gender Technical Working Group (GTWG) has been mandated to provide support to ensure that the Centre meets its objective. Kisumu County Governor Jack Ranguma officially opened the Centre whose theme is “A coordinated response to Gender Based Violence” with sub theme “A violence free society.

Jamii Bora Bank to implement women and youth Fund

…By Kenyan Woman Correspondent

he government has partnered with Jamii Bora Bank to finance women and youth executing public contracts under the 30% procurement allocation .This was disclosed during a meeting held recently, when the Chief Commercial Officer of the bank, Mr. Timothy Kabiru, and the Cabinet Secretary of the Ministry of Devolution and Planning, Ms. Anne Waiguru, met and agreed to take up various collaborative initiative, in order to support youth, women, and persons with disabilities for infrastructure and agri-business projects on a county and national level. According to a press release made available to different media houses by the bank on 31st October 2013, this effort followed the announcement by the government to allocate 30% of all tenders to youth, women and persons with disabilities. In line with this, the bank has said it will finance all organizations participating in the tenders under the program through issues of bid bonds, performance bonds, LPO financing and invoice discounting with favourable

credit requirement. The release also revealed that the government is currently in the process of registering and pre-qualifying enterprises owned by youth, women, and persons with disabilities under the Access to Government Procurement Opportunities (AGPO) programme, also noting that special interest groups, will stand a chance to benefit from over Sh300 billion of the Sh1 trillion allocated to public procurement in this year’s budget.

Support Jamii Bora bank, having identified that youth, women, and persons with disabilities will still face a major challenge of high capital required in the procurement of tender, despite that government has waived several requirements to encourage special interest groups to participate in procurement, including scrapping capital minimums and tender fees, has said it will offer various financial instruments such as LPO financing, and invoice discounting to these enterprise, alongside other institutions such as Uwezo Fund and women enterprise funds. The bank has also agreed to re-finance

all Uwezo Fund beneficiaries who demonstrate outstanding repayments records and strong management capabilities, guaranteeing the beneficiaries a continuous source of funding after their businesses outgrow the Uwezo Fund. Furthermore, the bank has partnered with ATIX, a business advisory company for SMEs, to provide training on how to bid for government contracts as well as assist in company/business name registration, registration with treasuries at both county and national level, completion of tender documents as well as follow ups on the procurement process of tenders. According to the bank, some of the contracts already up for award are the supply and delivery of flowers, provision of cleaning services, photography and videography, and supply and delivery of mobile airtime. Jamii Bora bank noted that its main focus however will continue to be on leveraging technology to enable customers and all its stakeholders have access to a truly robust financial service that will enhance and transform their lifestyles anywhere, anytime and enabling them to do anything.

Issue Number 41 • October 2013

Celebrating International Day of the Girl Child

Girls must be saved from bearing burden of inequalities

…By Carolyne Oyugi

s the world celebrated the second International Day of the Girl Child, many girls all over the world have nothing to smile about. Their lives are full of burdens which they have to carry throughout their lives. Many a time girls are forced to sacrifice their playtime in order to do household chores and even worse sacrifice their childhood and get into early and forced marriages to solve family problems. These sacrifices have a big impact on girls’ academic performance and often leads to them discontinuing education. Adolescent girls in countries experiencing disasters such as drought, floods and epidemic as well as crises brought on by civic strife suffer more. A report launched by Plan International, a child rights’ organization paints a bleak picture about the situation of adolescent girls in Africa. The report titled Adolescent Girls and Disasters says drought, conflict, food crises and natural disasters have devastating effects on adolescent girls as some are forced into early marriage or sexual exploitation.

Survival “When crisis strikes, adolescent girls are forced to shoulder much of the burden of family survival. As a result they become victims of misguided and harmful coping strategies,” the report says. Speaking during the launch of the report in Nairobi, Gezahegn Kebebe, Regional Director of Plan International in Eastern and Southern Africa stressed that Africa governments and development organisations need to ensure that harmful coping strategies such as dropping out of school, early marriages and migration from home should be replaced by access to education at all levels. In Africa, some emergencies especially like drought and its resulting food shortages can last for decades. Globally, one in five girls is denied an education due to daily realities of poverty, discrimination and violence. Kebebe refers to this as “not only unjust but also a huge waste of potential with serious global consequences”. He says that drought, conflict, food crises and natural disasters have devastating effects on adolescent girls as some are forced into early marriages or sexual exploitation.

Exploitation The report further reveals that African adolescent girls are routinely disadvantaged in terms of nutrition, domestic workloads and education. In addition they are made to labour and their sexu-

ality exploited as commodities in the general struggle for survival in unprotected and risky living conditions. He states that girls have fewer opportunities to participate, make their voices heard, develop talents and contribute to societies, except in the most menial ways. “We must start to see emergencies and disasters in terms of the underlying conditions of poverty and gender inequality which invariably exacerbate the impact of disasters on the most vulnerable, especially adolescent girls,” cautions Kabede. “In Plan, we are playing our part through our ‘Because I am a Girl’ campaign which is aims at helping girls break the inter-generational cycle of poverty. One key focus for the campaign is education. We are advocating for universal access for girls to receive at least nine years

Prof Rose Odhiambo,Secretary of the National Gender and Equality Commission,Gezahegn Kebebe,Regional Director of Plan International -East and South Africa and Carol Sherman, Country Directer Plan International- Kenya during the launch of the Report Because I am a Girl. Pictures: Plan International. of quality education,” he explains. His sentiments were echoed by Prof Rose Odhiambo, Secretary of the National Gender and Equality Commission who expressed disappointment with the society. She noted that it is very painful that some millions of people are still denied their rights to education and many other rights simply because of their gender.

Inequality “The evidence is clear: investing in girls and women is critical to fighting poverty. It is absolutely shocking that the biggest barrier to a healthy and successful life for millions of the world’s poorest

“We must start to see emergencies and disasters in terms of the underlying conditions of poverty and gender inequality which invariably exacerbate the impact of disasters on the most vulnerable, especially adolescent girls.” Gezahegn Kebebe,

people is their gender.” According to Odhiambo, The International Day of the Girl Child will help raise awareness on this inequality, reminding the world that giving girls and women better access to education, healthcare and jobs as well as a voice in decision making, helps makes societies healthier, more prosperous and peaceful. Odhiambo further shared that the odds are against girls in many parts of the world, particularly those from poor and most marginalized communities yet research shows that when girls reach their full potential, through improved status, better healthcare and education, it is an incredibly effective development tool for society as a whole. She called on governments and policy makers to help and give every girl quality education. “We want the issue of child marriage raised in the Human Rights Council and we want to pursue a General Assembly Resolution which addresses child marriage as a violation of children’s rights,” Odhiambo said. She added: “Plus we want to ensure that the minimum age of marriage is 18 for both boys and girls, with

or without parental consent.” Research shows that each extra year of a mother’s schooling cuts infant mortality by between five and 10 per cent. It has been estimated that universal secondary education for girls in subSaharan Africa could save as many as 1.8 million lives annually. An extra year of secondary school increases a girl’s potential income by 15 to 25 per cent. An increase of only one per cent in girls secondary education attendance, adds 0.3 per cent to a country’s GDP. Worldwide, disasters have increased from 90 a year in 1970s to almost 450 a year in the last decade. Experts differ, but reasons for this increase include climate change, rapid urbanization and environmental degradation. The International Day of the Girl Child was adopted by the United Nations last year to promote girls’ rights, highlight gender inequalities between girls and boys and address the various forms of discrimination suffered by girls around the globe. This year’s theme for the Day of the girl child is Innovating for Girls’ Education.

Foundation targets to empower girls in Coast region

…By Omar Mwalago

ccess to information will now be easy for women and girls in Kwale following the establishment of a project that seeks to empower them. The initiative has been launched through the German Foundation for World Population (DSW) to facilitate the implementation of a three year project focusing on women and girls empowerment. The project dubbed ‘Women and

Girls Empowerment’ (WOGE), is an initiative of Deutsche Stiftung Weltbevolkerung (DSW) which has roped in various government departments in the county. The initiative targets both women and girls and seeks to equip them with skills and capacity to form viable groups that can engage in income generating activities. The project which is being implemented in four East African countries on a pilot basis covers Tanzania, Uganda, Ethiopia and Kenya.

In Kenya, the project targets women and girls in organized groups at Kubo Division, Kwale County and Kikambala Division of Kilifi County in Coast region. According to George Ouma, Program Coordinator Coast Region, government departments will play a key role in the implementation process. Complement “The project aims at complimenting services already offered by the government and thus the need to involve relevant departments to identify ben-

eficiaries and avoid duplication of efforts,” noted Ouma. Already, ten groups have been identified and are slated to benefit from the project where government officers will offer technical support and facilitate in the forums. David Kobia, the programme’s officer in charge of Coast region, believes that the partnership will strongly have an impact in enabling the community access accurate information on time. According Kobia, an information resource centre will be set up in Lukore

to enable beneficiaries access information from the centre. The DSW plans to negotiate with the adult education office to utilize their Community Learning Resource Centre or a container structure still at the same site. The resource centre is aimed at ensuring that women and girls get information and skills on how they can manage and improve their lives and living standards. “For a long time women and girls have lagged behind in development due to lack of information,” Ouma said.

Celebrating International Day of the Girl Child

Issue Number 41 • October 2013

Girls forced to undergo invasive pregnancy tests

…By Natalia Garzon

dolescent girls in Tanzania are routinely and often without warning subjected to invasive, mandatory pregnancy testing, which has led to more than 55,000 of the being expelled or forced to drop out of school in the last decade because of pregnancy. A new report from the Centre for Reproductive Rights reveals that the degrading policy has not only affected vast numbers of young women but infringed on their rights due to forced pregnancy testing and the expulsion from school. “Forcing adolescent girls to undergo pregnancy tests in Tanzanian schools is degrading and utterly discriminatory. It violates both national and international human rights law — regardless of whether these young women are pregnant or not,” said Lillian Sepúlveda, director of the Global Legal Programme at the Centre for Reproductive Rights. She added: “Denying pregnant girls their right to education is a gross violation of fundamental human rights.”

Report In the report, the Centre uncovered that these practices are being used by school officials to shame and scare adolescents in an effort to prevent premarital sex and early pregnancy. However, schools fail to provide reproductive health education or services that could arm students with information to prevent pregnancy. Not surprisingly, contraceptive use among adolescent girls in Tanzania remains minimal with only 10.7 per cent of sexually active women aged 15-19 reported using any birth control method. “Adolescents have the same fundamental human rights as adults, and just like adults, should be able to access the tools they need to make informed choices about their reproductive health,”

noted Dr Clement Julius Mashamba, advocate and the third Vice President of the African Committee of Experts on the Rights and Welfare of the Child. “By denying adolescents access to contraceptives and reproductive health education, schools are forcing pregnant girls into early childrearing at the expense of education and other life goals.” The report dubbed Forced Out reveals that in addition to lack of reproductive health education and services, the Tanzanian government has failed to address the high rates of sexual assault and early marriage in the country — serious factors contributing to the instance of adolescent pregnancy.

Among the report’s various recommendations, the Centre calls on Tanzania government to immediately end the illegal practice of forced pregnancy testing in schools and ensure that adolescent girls can continue with their education during and after pregnancy. “If the Tanzanian government really wants to curb the high adolescent pregnancy rate, the Ministry of Education must create and enforce policies to protect female students from sexual violence and coercion in schools,” said Evelyne Opondo, regional director for Africa at the Centre. She added: “Furthermore, schools must provide quality sexual and reproductive health education and Tanzanian Violence law must be amended to align with interAccording to a 2009 national sur- national human rights laws by raising the vey commissioned by the United Na- marriage age for women to 18 years old.” tions Children’s Fund, nearly three in 10 Shame women between the ages of 13 and 24 in mainland Tanzania reported experiencThe report details more than a dozing at least one instance of sexual vio- en personal accounts of young women being subjected to mandatory pregnanlence before turning 18. Adolescents from rural areas and cy testing in either primary or secondmarginalized communities are more ary school, many of whom describe the vulnerable to forced sexual encounters, experience as shameful, terrifying and placing them at an even greater risk of painful. Those expelled felt ostracized unplanned pregnancy. from family and friends, and worse, Although the Tanzanian govern- that their chances at an education and ment recognizes early marriage often brighter future were ripped away. “What hurt most for me was the way leads to adolescent pregnancy, the country’s own laws allow girls as young as my family turned their back on me,” said 15 to be married off with 40 per cent of Sikudhani Ali*, one of the young women adolescent girls in Tanzania being mar- interviewed. “Even after I had a stillborn ried by the time they are 18. Majority of and wanted to go back to school, my them have reported to being forced into mother said the family had given up on me and would not support my dreams sexual activity.

“What hurt most for me was the way my family turned their back on me. Even after I had a stillborn and wanted to go back to school, my mother said the family had given up on me and would not support my dreams for an education.” Sikudhani Ali

Sikudhani Ali had to drop out of school when she was found pregnant during one of the regular pregnancy tests done in some Tanzanian schools. Picture :Courtesy Centre for Reproductive Rights.

for an education.” In addition to interviewing former and current students throughout the country including Iringa, Kilimanjaro, Pwani, Dar es Salaam and Morogoro regions, the Centre and Yale Law School’s Allard K. Lowenstein International Human Rights Clinic interviewed more than 26 key stakeholders and experts in education, children’s rights and health, to understand better the legal and policy context in which these practices occur. The Centre also reviewed government laws, regulations, policies, guidelines and studies pertaining to education as well as school and adolescent health. The Centre for Reproductive

Rights is a global legal advocacy organisation that fights to ensure reproductive rights are treated as fundamental human rights. The Centre has worked for more than a decade across various regions in Africa to advance women’s access to reproductive health care through law and policy reform. The Africa programme has focused on the most pressing reproductive health issues in the region, including the high incidence of maternal deaths, including those from unsafe abortion, human rights abuses perpetrated against women seeking reproductive healthcare, and adolescent girls’ reproductive health. The writer is the International Press Officer, Centre for Reproductive Rights

Initiative supports girl-child education in Sudan Thirteen year-old Amal Ahmed Hassan, a grade eight pupil at the Mabrouka Community School, is a living testimony of the intervention’s impact on the community development.

…By Kenyan Woman Correspondent

he common saying that when you educate a woman, you educate an entire community cannot be better demonstrated than through a school improvement project in Sudan. For over five years now, the programme has not only brought positive change to members of Mabrouka community living in the Sudanese town of Edduweim, but has also instilled a saving culture among the young people. Since establishing the Mabrouka Community School in 2000, Plan Sudan has remained at the forefront of girls’ empowerment. The initiative has helped the community to discard traditional practices that hinder the girlchild from accessing education. In the developing world, girls are regarded as the backbone of rural economies. They fetch water and firewood for their households and care for younger siblings. Only the lucky ones go to school despite their great potential as leaders and contributors in community transformation. For many girls, the retrogressive practices have shattered their dreams in education since they are driven into early marriages and in some cases; parents insist that they stay away from school to help put food on the table.

Pride

Amal Ahmed Hassan showing her certificate and medal awarded by the Ministry of Education in Sudan for being one of the outstanding students in academic and creativity in Sudan. Picture :Courtesy Plan Sudan.

Her achievement is a source of great pride to her parents and the community at large and an indication that investing in girls has a positive effect on the community — not to mention the girls themselves. In December 2011, Amal was awarded a gold medal by the Ministry of Education in Sudan for being one of the most outstanding students in academics and creativity at an event in Khartoum. Her face beams with joy when she narrates her experiences during the trip. For Amal, the achievements do not end with the medal. She is also the president of Aflatoun Club in her school, which has 200 members. The Aflatoun programme empowers children and youth to make a positive change in their lives through activities that include; story-telling, games, savings club as well as financial and commu-

nity improvement enterprises. Plan Sudan initiated the Aflatoun programme in 2009 and covers nine rural districts, including Edduweim. Currently, the Aflatoun programme has more than 1,665 members. As the president of Aflatoun in her school, Amal understands that it’s her duty to educate the other pupils on saving money as well as encouraging the younger children to enrol in school. The Mabrouka community has created its own initiatives towards improving the education environment as an incentive to encourage enrolment and reduce dropout rates especially among girls. The school has maintained a 100 per cent school completion rates over the last four years, despite the dimensions of poverty in this area. Amal received a boost from SUDA-POST where the company opened a savings account for 30 Aflatoun members as an incentive to go further in to a saving program that contributes towards improving families living conditions. Amal joined secondary school, grade (2), where she scored high to take the top position in the class. Her achievements demonstrate that an educated girl will stay healthy, save money, empower her community and change the world. Courtesy Plan International

Celebrating International Day of the Girl Child

Issue Number 41 • October 2013

Traditional leaders outlaw child marriage in Malawi

…By Correspondent

n Northern Malawi, the practice of marrying off teenage girls to older men who pay large dowries is a common phenomenon. In the past, many community members considered girls as a source of wealth. However, due to the widespread cases of child marriages and children dropping out of school in the area, Plan Malawi trained and supported communities to set up child protection committees in Karonga District. The committees empower community members to address child protection, rights and concerns through preventative measures, monitoring, reporting, advocacy and facilitating rehabilitation of victims where necessary. After training on child rights, the chiefs and child protection committee members in Karonga joined forces and drafted stringent by-laws. The laws are different from state legislation and ensure that children in the community are protected from any form of abuse and harmful traditional practices. The perpetrators also face tough penalties. “In the past we had our own cultures that allowed us to take a girl to a man without any question, whatever their age. The girl would be referred to as wealth. If a girl was born in a family, the father considered himself as rich,” said Mackson Mwakaboko, traditional authority leader of Karonga District. “When the child protection committees went round the villages to raise awareness in our

community on child rights issues, they called a meeting summoning all traditional leaders. We were trained on child rights and they told us that the kupimbira culture was harmful to our girls,” explained Mwakaboko. He added: “I thought about their mission, and realised that fewer than 10 girls had been educated in my village. We decided to work as a team.” One of the bylaws drafted by the team states that: If someone in the community is found forcing a girl or boy to marry before completing their education they will be fined 60,000 kwacha. “These bylaws are working and helping our children to get education. Many people are afraid of breaking them because of the consequences which attract hefty penalties which they cannot afford,” observed Mwakaboko. The monies collected from the penalties are donated to schools for development projects.

Changing attitudes Fifteen year old Myness is a beneficiary of the programme. She was rescued from her marriage and taken back to school. The young girl has been living with her grandmother since she started school because her parents, who live in another village, are unable to fend for her and four other siblings due to poverty. Even though she moved to stay with her grandmother, she would skip school because the old woman could not afford to pay her school fees. “It happened when I was only 13 years old. My friend who had already found herself a hus-

“I cried when I received the good news about my grandchild’s performance. I was happy yet disturbed as I didn’t know what to do. I went back to school and talked to the teacher who advised me to seek help from the Child Protection Committee in our village to bring Myness back home,” says the grandmother. After reporting her granddaughter’s Myness 15 is a beneficiary of Child Protection Committee in Karonga dilemma to the committee, they traced District, Malawi. She was rescued from her marriage and taken back to school. Pictures: Courtesy Plan International Myness to her husband’s house. “I was at home Apart from withdrawing them countant,” Myness stressed. when some people (the child She noted: “Recently two of we also look out for those chilprotection committee members) my friends at school were plan- dren that have dropped out and came and asked me if I was aware ning to get married, but I dis- resettle them back to school. We that I had passed my exams and couraged them. I told them my visit homes and advise parents had been selected to join one of story, and they stopped all the on the importance of educating the best schools in my district,” marriage preparations and chose their children.” Myness said. She added: “They to continue with education.” Plan’s programme is aimed promised to contribute part of Milka Mwiba, a parent from at ensuring children and youth my school fee and I decided to the community, said: “I am hap- of Malawi are able to realise their run away while my husband was py that these bylaws have been right to protection through these away.” put in place by our traditional strengthened community child “I was afraid and thought he leaders to ensure that our chilprotection systems. would come looking for me but I dren get education. Our children “So far in this area we have have never seen him. The com- are working hard and we believe trained and helped community mittee contributed some money that if they are educated then this members including traditional and paid part of my school fee. I will help to reduce poverty in our leaders to establish 30 commuam happy I returned to school, area.” nity child protection structures even though there may be chalShe noted: “There is a fine for which are working in seven lenges someday I will be an ac- those children who get married traditional areas,” said Dennis early and a fine for those who ab- Kasambara, child protection fa“In the past we had our own scond from school.” cilitator for Mzuzu programme According to Stephen unit in Plan Malawi. cultures that allowed us to take a Mwakitalu, chairman of Mu“The project is also curbing girl to a man without any ques- songa Child Protection Commit- violence against children and tion, whatever their age. The girl tee in Karonga District: “During cultural norms which are impedthe sensitisation campaigns we ing girls from continuing their would be referred to as wealth.” identified a number of girls who education,” Kasambara stated. had been married at a tender age. Courtesy Plan International Mackson Mwakaboko

band convinced me to get into marriage,” said Myness. “One day she came to me and asked why I was suffering. Life was very difficult at home. We could not even afford soap. My friend told me it would be better if I got married like her, so that my husband could take care of my needs.” Although Myness was reluctant, there was a man in the village who kept pressing her to marry him. “He promised to take care of me, provide whatever I wanted. After sitting for my grade eight exams I accepted,” Myness explains. She adds: However, life was not any better because my husband was an alcoholic. Since my grandmother was equally poor, I decided to persevere in the marriage.” Myness says her husband kept any of his promises. When she asked him, he said he had already paid her dowry of 37,000 kwacha ($110) and that was the money he would have used for her upkeep. “I regretted what I had done. My wish was to continue with education but then I was helpless and had no one to support me.” When Myness’ grade 8 results were released, she had passed with flying colours. The teacher at her school informed her grandmother of the good news but the girl was already a wife.

Schools, parents put on notice

…By Omar Mwalago

arents and schools that force pregnant girls to drop out of school risk prosecution. This was said by Kwale County leaders that included Fatma Achani, Deputy Governor, Suleiman Dori, Msambweni Member of National Assembly and Zainab Chidzuga, Women Representative. The leaders noted that girls who get pregnant in schools must be encouraged to continue with their education after child birth. They warned that action will be taken against schools’ managers and parents who force girls to drop out of school due to pregnancy. “While the high cases of early pregnancies in Msambweni District are worrying, we need to ensure that girls who get pregnant are readmitted to schools,” Dori noted. Achani decried the rising cases of defilement in the County lamenting that many school girls are being defiled by old men in the County. She warned that stern action will be taken against offenders.

She cited a recent case where two pupils from Mwamose Primary School in Lunga Lunga aged 14 and 16 years respectively were raped by their own father. Achani asked the county administration to investigate all rape cases and arrest those involved in the inhuman act. She said that culprits have been brought to book while many cases have been reported to the police. “Although women have been reporting such cases, police have been reluctant to arrest the culprits, thus encouraging the vice,” said Achani. She urged Kwale County residents to work closely with children rights activists to ensure that offenders are brought to book.

Bursery The leaders made the remarks at Dr Babla Diani Secondary School where they disbursed KSh4.628 million to students in secondary schools, colleges and university. Dori reiterated his commitment to ensuring that all needy children access bursary

through Constituency Development Fund. On the other hand, Chidzuga urged women in the area to support girl child education. She called for concerted efforts among different stakeholders to improve education standards. Their sentiments were supported by Gabriel Baraza, Children’s Officer, Diani location who noted that girls as young as 11 years were having sex in exchange of sanitary towels, body lotion, perfumed soaps and snacks. “Most of them get pregnant before the age of 17 with many dropping out of school to fend for themselves and for their children,” he said. Baraza noted that they are driven into these relationships mainly by poverty, parental neglect and pleasure of having older boyfriend with a lot of money to boast about. A spot check revealed that poverty and parental neglect is to blame for the high cases of teenage pregnancies. Grace Wanjiku, a Form Two student intimates that she abandoned school when

her pregnancy started showing. Wanjiku got into a relationship with a 28-year-old man who would buy her soap and sanitary towels because she was too shy to ask her father. “I was too shy to ask my father for sanitary towels. My stepmother was not helpful either and would refer me to my father who would sometimes tell me that I was a big girl Right: Kwale County Deputy Governor Fatuma Achani at Dr Babla Diani secondary school during the official issuance of and needed to fend for myself. Most of the time I went with- bursary funds to secondary, college and university students and out sanitary towels,” Wanjiku left, Mr. Ali Mafimbo Executive Board member for land, Mining and natural resources. explained. Picture: Omar Mwalago She added: “This forced me to get into a relationship with the 28-year-old man nant or nursing babies they maize and groundnuts. Kwale County Health Diwho would buy me soap, lo- cannot take care of. Baraza noted that the rector Hajjara Elbusaidy lation and sanitary towels and sometimes give me pocket county has a high incidence of mented that most of these girls teenage pregnancies with the give birth at home under the money.” In return, Wanjiku would hardest hit group being girls care of traditional birth attenengage in unprotected sex with in high school and primary dants who cannot provide speschool pupils in standard five cialized healthcare. the man. and six. Elbusaidy noted that the Incentives According to Mbwana girls face the risk of suffering “The man was giving me Bwatah, a children offi- fistula, raptured uterus and what my parents could not af- cer in Kikoneni location in unsafe abortion. “Early pregford to buy for me,” she lament- Msambweni sub-County, on nancy is fatal because the girls’ market days absenteeism from bodies are not well-developed ed. Incentives Wanjiku is not alone. Most class is highest with children and are susceptible to complioff her peers are either preg- being found hawking roasted cations at delivery,” she added.

Celebrating International Day of the Girl Child

Issue Number 41 • October 2013

Gender trainings to girls cascaded in Nandi North

Kenyan GBV activists unite to demand justice for rape victims

…By John Harrington Ndeta

…By John Ndeta

s the world marked 2013 International Day of the Girl Child, the Kenyan media was abuzz with the story of a brave Busia girl who over four months ago was beaten, gangraped and left to die in a toilet. However, sheer determination is what kept her alive. The story demonstrates the rampant nature of gender based violence in the country with defilement cases taking a lead and offenders going scot free. This has been attributed to the patriarchal nature of the society that belittles women and children to the extent of reducing them to sex objects. It is in this regard that the International Rescue Committee through Peace Initiative Kenya supported Simon Chepsiror, a chief in Nandi to cascade information on gender based violence to over 500 girls aged between 12 and 18 years in Nandi North. The school girls who gathered at Kamung’ei School were trained on how to take care of their lives as young girls. The event organised by a solid team of 15 community leaders led by Chepsiror was designed to transform attitudes and perceptions of the school girls towards making them productive members of the society. Chief Chepsiror who benefited from the 15 month Peace Initiative Kenya project through trainings on peace and gender is rapidly creating awareness among men, women and children in his area of jurisdiction. “My committee has equal gender representation and all of us are passionate about seeing change in the society. I have used the County Peace Platform model to create this platform where we are reaching out to residents of Nandi North with messages of women protection and empowerment,” says the chief. Over 500 school girls from seven primary and two secondary schools in Kamung’ei village gathered at Kamung’ei Secondary School to explore ways and means of dealing with critical issues bedevilling the girl child in Nandi County.

he case of LIZ a sixteen year old girl who was gang-raped in Busia County, in Western Kenya over four months ago has literately refused to go away. LIZ was walking home from her grandfather’s funeral when she was ambushed by six men who took turns raping her and then threw her unconscious body down a six meter pit latrine. LIZ horror story has sent shockwaves throughout the world and the police are under pressure to respond. “Nothing will truly change unless the government is put under the global spotlight,” says Fanis Lisiagali from Health Care Assistance Kenya. Up to now, nobody has been arrested for this offence. Not the rapists nor the police and on the last day of October 2013, gender activists from all over the world took part in a peaceful march in Nairobi to press for the arrest and prosecution of the perpetrators and the security officers who abetted this heinous crime. The gender activists led by Peace Initiative Kenya partner, Coalition on Violence against Women (COVAW) in partnership with African Women’s Development and Communication Network (FEMNET), Men Engage Kenya (MenKen), Africa UNiTE and AVAAZ stormed the city centre with chants of: “We want Justice for LIZ”, “Slashing grass is not punishment for rape.” At the Inspector General of Police’s Office, the activists presented a raft of demands among them immediate arrest and punishment of the perpetrators and the police who let them go scot-free respectively. They also asked the government to fully meet medical bills for LIZ and many other women who have been raped in the past. “We call on you to deliver justice for Liz including the immediate arrest and prosecution of her rapists and full disciplinary action for the police officers who dismally failed to handle her case,” read Said Ali, the Executive Director at COVAW. The statement further said that by holding the police officers to account, the Inspector General will send a strong message to police everywhere that rape is not a misdemeanor, is a serious crime, and if police do not uphold the law they will be held to account. The activists demanded a public apology from the Inspector General and a commitment to deal with failures within the police force to ensure due diligence in protecting survivors of Gender Based Violence (GBV). In his response, William Okello, Chief of Staff at the Inspector General’s office acknowledged receipt of the 1.3 million petitions and promised to leave no stone unturned in the case of LIZ. The police agreed to a follow up meeting on November 1st where the Inspector General David Kimaiyo would be in attendance with representatives of the women rights networks to finalise on the action points raised to secure justice, not just for LIZ but for every woman and girl who suffers from GBV. “The case of LIZ is a living testimony that rape is still rife in Kenya. There is need for stiffer penalties and strict adherence to the laws governing GBV such as Sexual Offenses Act (2006),” said Nebilla Abdulmelik (FEMNET). She opines that there is an urgent need to establish reparation mechanisms for survivors of sexual violence. The writer is the Media and Peace campaign coordinator, Peace Initiative Kenya

Challenges “Our challenges in this region include early pregnancies, early marriages, and school dropouts,” said Rose Mutai, principal Kamung’ei Secondary School, adding that in the last two years, she has lost 14 girls to early pregnancies and forced marriages. “The message of how a girl can preserve herself, protection from gender based violence and empowerment is timely and could not have come to this community at a better time,” Mutai tells the audience gathered at Kamung’ei primary school hall When one of the facilitators, Shaban Varajab from Rural Women Peace Link inquired from the students why these problems remain a snare to them, the pupils highlighted low self-esteem, poverty, peer pressure, lack of commitment and sup-

Rose Nakitare from Transparency International takes the girls through an integrity class during a meeting organized by IRC to build girls capacity in GBV management. Bottom left to right: Nancy Chepchumb, a Form one student from Olmaroroi Secondary School responds to the challenges girls face and the fact that they are not given equal opportunity like boys. Natasha Chepkosgei, a Standard 7 pupil at Sing’ore Primary challenges her fellow girls to take their studies seriously. PICTURES: John Ndeta, IRC

port from the parents as the reasons why some of their colleagues are dropping out. Cultural practices such as marrying off young girls by parents were also cited as major impediments to the girl child in the larger Kenyan society. The influence of mass media, phones and internet in the modern age has not helped matters either as girls living in urban centres are ensnared by the allure of entertainment and unknowingly become victims of gender based violence. The forms of gender based violence range from denial of rights, rape, defilement, early and forced marriages, domestic violence and all manner of discriminations on basis of gender. All the above constitute gender based violence which the USAID funded Peace Initiative Kenya project is seeking to address. “When you educate a girl, you have educated the whole nation, community and world. An educated girl child has numerous advantages. She overcomes the cultural limitations and challenges, becomes independent, is an asset to the family and society and becomes a change agent. That is what you girls should aspire to become,” said Chepsiror. Varajab challenged the girls to remember at all times that their future is in their hands. “When I remember that I have a long way to go and that I have a future, then my goals should follow my plan of action from a tender age,” emphasized Varajab.

On the other hand, Rose Sitati from Transparency International expressed the need for girls to embrace integrity and sobriety in their lives. The girls were also taken through safety and protection measures to avoid overexposing themselves to risks of GBV. “You must understand your environment, avoid risky places and call for help whenever you feel that your life is in danger. If someone close to you is becoming abusive, do not keep to yourself. Seek help from a trusted person including your close friend, parents, teachers, local elders and administrators,” reiterated Chepsiror. The girls were encouraged not to keep to themselves but seek prompt psychological and medical help whenever they are faced with any form of gender based violence. “All forms of sexual exploitation and abuse particularly rape must be reported within three days to ensure that one gets lifesaving medical support,” the trainers emphasized. The girls were also challenged to take their education seriously as well as engage in income generation activities as opposed to depending on men for survival.

Determination In Nairobi, the International Rescue Committee released a statement highlighting the need for women and girls to be supported economically to enable them prosper.

In Kenya, girls and young women between the ages 16 and 24 account for more than 20 per cent of Kenya’s population. While these young women have enormous potential to create positive change, they struggle to find jobs that will enable them further their education, care for their families and see a more prosperous future. According Jerotich Seii Houlding, IRC Country Representative, the challenge lies in enabling women and girls to reach the next level and then to control the money they earn so they can use it the way they want, set aside savings and open their own bank accounts. “Women and girls in Kenya are involved in a myriad of economic activities and are often the main supporters of their families,” said Houlding, adding that 90 per cent of the income and profits that women make goes back to the family, compared to 30 to 40 per cent for men. “We want to see girls move from just scratching a meagre living in towns and villages to owning, operating and expanding their own meaningful businesses or accessing formal employment and moving up the ladder,” she asserted.

“You must understand your environment, avoid risky places and call for help whenever you feel that your life is in danger. If someone close to you is becoming abusive, do not keep to yourself. Seek help from a trusted person including your close friend, parents, teachers, local elders and administrators.” Simon Chepsiror

Celebrating International Day of the Girl Child

Issue Number 41 • October 2013

In Tharaka girls bear the burden of family troubles …By Kenyan Correspondent

Woman

n the semi-arid zone to the east of Mount Kenya, drought is a recurring challenge to people’s livelihoods. In this part of the country, key economic activities revolve around farming and livestock, both of which are affected adversely by long spells of drought. Tharaka District is low, hilly and sandy lowland characterised mainly by sandy and stony soils. “We only get water from the dry river belt which is six kilometres away. When it is dry we have to walk for five hours. We also look for casual jobs in far flung areas. Most of the time I leave home very early in the morning and return late at night,” says Janet Gakunyi, a mother of six children. She adds: “Sometimes you buy food, but you may not be able to cook it because there is no water, so you have to wait until the following day to trek five hours to look for water.” As you drive to Kathangachini, there are troubling signs of poor or non-existing infrastructure such as roads, irrigation canals, hospitals, telecommunication and lack of water. Apart from the economic

challenges, cultural practices and attitudes towards girls are problematic. Dominic Muchemi, a program’s officer of livelihoods at Plan International in Tharaka notes: “The community has apportioned mothers and girls the responsibility of making sure that food is on the table. They are the ones who look for firewood, graze the cattle and cook for their families. In most cases when the parents go to the market, the girls take responsibility to care for their siblings at home. They will miss school and have no chance of getting education.”

Abuse In recent droughts, cases of abuse have gone up, not only denying them access and enjoyment of basic human rights but also threatening their future. Most children have been abandoned as parents search for food in areas outside the district. Some have dropped out of school while many others have to grapple with diseases as a result of inadequate water and poor nutrition. “A case in point is when we have experienced severe food shortage over two years due to the unreliable rainfall pattern. Women would go to the mountain to cut grass and bring back

to sell at KSh5. That time maize was going for KSh50 per kilo. We would then save until it was enough to buy food,” explains Gakunyi. She adds: “Some days we would be lucky but at times it was not enough to even buy half a kilo. I would grind that and cook porridge for my children.” During the dry spell, life is harsh for girls. They are forced to drop out of school and assume parental responsibilities while the parents move Grace, 18, checks on her baby in their hut. She was forced to drop out of school as her parents could not afford to provide food and pay for school fees. about, fetch water, graze livestock and in some cases are married off. “During the days I stayed at farm so that they could provide up infrastructure such as water Sometimes girls will offer sex for home, there was a boy who used milk for my children. I was not pans and local catchments to food or water. to herd cattle near our home- able to provide food for my fam- increase rain water harvesting. Grace, now 18, was forced to stead. We became friends and I ily and thought that would have This will enable the communidrop out of school as her parents would go with him to the fields. I helped. I pray to God to help me ties to access water for domestic could not afford to provide food would follow him to his parents’ so that my children can get edu- use and livestock,” says Michael and pay for school fees. She used house to eat because they had cation too.” Muthui, Coordinator of livelito take care of her siblings as her food while we had nothing to eat To help avert the rising cases hoods for Plan International in parents went to look for causal back at home except porridge. of girls dropping out of school, Tharaka programme unit. work. After five months I discovered, Plan International is helping He adds: “We are also initiat“Sometimes I stayed home I was pregnant and he ran away communities access their rights ing and supporting communities for two months and every time from this village,” Grace says. to food, education and health. with irrigation projects targeting I returned to school, my classDuring the emergency in- about six hundred households. Interventions mates had already completed terventions, the children’s char- This will not only improve food their exams. I never wanted to Her father adds: “What hap- ity started a school feeding pro- security at household level but it drop out of school, but the prob- pened to my daughter is because gramme to support schools with will also be a source of income lems we faced at home pushed I allowed the herd boy to build extra food. for the poor families.” me out,” she says. Courtesy Plan International “We have also helped to put the shed for their cattle in my

Naivasha women walking out of poverty …By Munene Maina

ary Njeri has seen her cloth business grow. Although she has not attained her dream business step by step she is headed there. For Mary it takes risk for anyone who wants to grow their business. She says her one and half year old business nearly collapsed, barely eight months after opening it. “I almost closed the business after I got some financial problems and I had to look for a way to save it,” she says. Mary says after days of thinking on what to do she decided to do the last thing she wanted- take loan. By then she was a member in Naivasha Women Sacco and she approached them for a loan. “It was my first ever loan and I was fearful of what will befall me if my plans failed. Nonetheless I took it and it helped save my business,” Mary says. She notes that borrowing with a clearly defined purpose is one way that can help many business-women overcome hurdles. Mary is among over one thousand women in Naivasha who are members of Naivasha Women Sacco that funds women running small businesses in the area. Women in the area are changing

trends and are engaging in business to help supplement their husbands in providing for the family rather being house wives. Most jobs available in Naivasha are casual in the many flower farms surrounding the town with little pay to fully support the family.

Naivasha, former assistant minister and Naivasha Mp Jane Kihara urged them not to let their dream fade. “When we started this sacco our aim was to empower women and fight poverty. We must not let that dream get away. Let us increase our share capital to strengthen our sacco,” said Kihara.

Need

Problems Diana Njuguna, Naivasha Women Sacco manager, says there are a lot of family problems in the town that are as result of financial constrains. “A large number of people in Naivasha work as labourers in flower farms and what they earn is not sufficient to support all family needs. This has created a lot of family issues some of which are bad tales to tell,” says Ms Njuguna. She says the objective of sacco was to help women operating small business grow them as well as lending a hand to those wishing to start. “The sacco aimed at helping women at the grassroot level in lending them money at a low rate and enable them save,” she adds. Ms Njuguna notes through the

Members of Naivasha women sacco, during their Annual General Meeting. Picture: Munene Maina.

sacco many women have been able to expand their businesses through borrowing and increase their savings. However, she says the sacco has not been able to perform as they wished due to politics since it was an initiative of the former Naivasha MP Jane Kihara. “When she lost election some members stopped saving while others defaulted paying their loans. This almost crippled the operation of the sacco,” she

says. She notes through mobilization the membership of the sacco has grown and its now on the right track. Started in 2007, Naivasha Women Sacco brings together women from both Naivasha and Gilgil districts with the objective of empowering them economically. Addressing members during the sacco’s annual general meeting in

She said a strong sacco will do much better in improving members lives and called upon loan defaulters to repay. The former Naivasha Mp said she was not interested in politics any longer and urged members not to allow politics kill the sacco. The sacco which is in partnership with other Saccos is helping women walk out of poverty. Ruth Wanjiku, a farmer attests to this. She says through the loan she got from the sacco she bought several sheep and a cow. Today they have conceived and is expecting them to add her fortune once they give birth. To many women in Naivasha it is a step by step out of poverty. “Women in Naivasha are venturing in businesses to change their economic status. Many are taking loans unlike in the past where many feared,” says Elizabeth Munene, a loan officer with Speed Capital limited.

Celebrating International Day of the Girl Child

Girls displaced by floods remain resilient in Mozambique …By Kenyan Woman Correspondent

hen disaster strikes, livelihoods are disrupted, homes are damaged and access to important resources is affected. Sometimes, children find themselves separated from their parents or even orphaned by disasters, and girls remain the most vulnerable. When floods hit Mozambique’s southern Gaza Province earlier this year, thousands of people from Chokwe District were forced to flee to safer grounds. Many people escaped to a camp in Chiaquelane where they settled, about 30 kilometres from their homes. Life has not been easy for many children and their families. They live in makeshift structures made of tents and polythene. Mastalina, 23, is one of the young women who fled from Chokwe in January. She says despite the move, life has not been rosy. Her parents re- Mastalina, 23, helps a friend to grind maize meal in Chiaquelmained in Chokwe. ane camp, southern Gaza province, Mozambique. Inset: MastShe said: “We left our village alina is among young women that have been displaced by floods because of the floods and I ar- in Chokwe, Mozambique. Her parents have remained in Chokwe rived in Chiaquelane in February. but she is hopeful for a better future. I left home while it was possible to walk through the water, but when I reached the nearby town it was so help and I am given food,” she exAlthough challenged flooded. I could not proceed. I was plains. by inadequate resources, lucky enough to meet a man who “When we moved here, the Gov- the government has funcwas going to South Africa and he ernment donated a small amount of tional Disaster Risk Reoffered me a lift with my baby. I did land to us but because there is no hos- duction (DRR) structures not know him but he helped me to pital in this area, I was forced to take at all levels from national escape the floods. my baby back to Chokwe, where she to village. The school and is staying with my mother.” family are the core supLoss “I want to find another opportu- port structures for ado“I managed to carry with me a nity to better my life. I was not going lescent girls and boys. Through these strucfew clothes from home, but when I to school during the recent floods, I reached Chiaquelane, I lost every- dropped out in 2003 because I had tures, Plan Mozambique thing as there was nowhere to sleep to stay at home and take care of my is creating disaster risk or keep my belongings. On arrival father who was ill. When he died reduction clubs in local we found some organisations that I could not go back to school. He primary schools. This helped us with tents, but these we used to pay my school fees, and my approach has shown that mum could not afford it, so I had no girls and boys are imporshared with others. tant channels of infor“At times we could share a tent choice. “I wish to go back to school if I get mation from schools to between five people who had also been displaced by the floods. The liv- the opportunity. I would love to be a homes and the commuing conditions were too bad for us to doctor. I feel bad about my experience nity. As girls participate in disaster and pray to God to help me so that I risk reduction activities, they would save anything. become responsive when it comes to “The recent floods reminded me can help my daughter. disaster management. about a horrifying experience I enAgriculture In Inhambane Province, Plan countered in 2000. I was very lucky that time because I nearly died. So, “I do not feel very safe because International has interventions in this time I was afraid and that was on Saturdays I go back to Chokwe different schools to raise teachers’ why I decided to leave before the wa- to look for tomatoes to sell but while awareness on the objectives of starting ters reached our house. we are away people sometimes come school clubs. The clubs are formed by “We were rescued by a helicopter, and steal our tents including the little about 70 children. “When floods hit Chokwe, we and only children were being given items we have. We share one cooking priority. It was very difficult and scary. pot with our neighbour and it wears supported 260,000 children in 19 I nearly fell in the water as I struggled out quickly. We have to wait and cook schools with school kits. In conjunction with the government we to hold tight to the rescuer to avoid with the same pot in turns.” drowning. Antonio Mbazima, a secretary also provided emotional support,” “The sleeping conditions here of the Chiaquelane community, who said Oracio Chauque, Disaster Risk are not so good, and we lack work to collects information from members Reduction coordinator for Plan Modo. These challenges might lead girls and data on those receiving con- zambique. to look for other means of getting in- struction materials donated by the Motivation come to cater for their basic needs. government says: “There are 2,600 Some of the tents are now torn. people that live here and have been “We think the children are enWhen we face these problems, oth- registered but there are still more thusiastic and this is also a way to ers are likely to think of stealing, the coming in.” reach their parents and influence other thing is to go back to Chokwe “Children are greatly affected them to take correct action. We have to help people carry their goods as because most of them stopped going activities for both girls and boys to a means of work to earn money for to school, some of them fell sick, and ensure they are equally prepared. We food.” there is no place and proper condi- train children clubs in vulnerability “Sometimes I help the local sections for families to start agricultural concepts, how to analyse, understand retary in writing documents and activities since there are no rains and grade the risk. We also try to link collecting data of people receiving here,” he explains. with climate change so that they can

Issue Number 41 • October 2013

Early socialisation through curriculum to help end violence against girls …By Kenyan Woman Correspondent

understand that the frequency of disaster is related to climate change,” added Oracio. School children at a primary school in Inhambane that is involved in the programme were highly motivated and had good knowledge of disaster management and the problems their communities face as a result of disasters. Amina, 12, a member of the DRR club at the school, said: “It is important to learn about disaster preparedness because from this knowledge we can help to inform others in the community about how to prepare when there is a disaster and move to a place that is safe.” Eleven year-old Milton, a grade six boy at the school, added: “I have learned that if there is erosion in my house, I have to plant trees and grass, and also fill in the gaps with sacks of sand and put them around the house. My grandfather was affected by floods. He lived near rivers, and when it rained the rivers flooded his home. If I was aware at that time, I would have told him to move to places safer from floods.” Courtesy Plan International

hile most girl say they have experienced sexual and physical violation by the time they are 18 years, efforts have been going on in all ways possible to ensure the vice is ended. The UN Women and World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts (WAGGGS) have launched a pioneering non-formal education curriculum for young people on ending violence against women and girls called “Voices against Violence”. There has been a lot of talk about ending violence against women and girls for a while. Research indicates that one in three women and girls still experience abuse in their lifetime. More than half of sexual assaults are committed against girls aged below 16 years. While laws and services are crucial, preventing this violence from happening in the first place is the best way to end this pandemic. “Voices against Violence” is a unique education programme that puts young people at the heart of prevention efforts. It gives them tools and expertise to understand the root causes of violence in their communities, to educate and involve their peers and communities to prevent such violence, and to learn about where to access support if they experience violence. Designed for various age groups ranging from five to 25 years, the co-educational curriculum will be adapted to national context, translated into local languages and will reach an estimated five million children and young people by 2020. “Voices against Violence” is a coeducational curriculum developed by the World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts (WAGGGS) and UN Women, with inputs from young people. Designed for various age groups ranging from five to 25 years, it provides young people with tools and expertise to understand the root causes of violence in their communities, to educate and involve their peers and communities to prevent such violence, and to learn about where to access support if violence is experienced. The curriculum includes a handbook for peer educators that will help them deliver age-appropriate sessions, as well as age-appropriate non-formal educational activities. The youngest groups may start out with storytelling and games that prompt them to think about gender bias and stereotypes, while older age groups can organize poster competitions, visit and volunteer with local shelters, or develop local community-based campaigns and projects to address specific forms of violence against girls and women. “Voices against Violence” is a tool for young people around the world. It can be adapted to national contexts, translated into local languages, and rolled out in schools and communities in partnership with youth organizations, UN partners and governments. — World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts and UN Women

Issue Number 41 • October 2013

Fenny Akoth

Rising above physical disability on a journey to success …By Anita Chepkoech

enny Akoth is a jack of many trades and a master of all. This has enabled her to rise way above her physical disability. If she is not busy practicing volleyball for upcoming tournaments, she is rushing to beat deadlines imposed by schools that have given her tender to sew school uniforms. Akoth is also engaged in crocheting hand baskets or making liquid soap from her house in Corner Maji, within Kisumu’s Manyatta Estate which all earns her income. Growing up as an orphan and being physically handicapped, her education and career path faced myriad challenges but being positive and aggressive, she did not let the predicament define her life. Akoth’s parents died when she was a baby leaving her to older siblings who struggled to bring her up. They even dragged her to Nyamonye Primary School in Bondo quite early. Akoth recalls that she was only eight years old when she suffered a polio attack which left her paralyzed her. “I was perhaps too young to understand my predicament but at that tender age I started questioning what would become of my future,” she says. She routinely attended school which to her was just a formality as physical education lessons and games was a factor that kept her going. She participated as far as her ability could allow and grew into a sports maniac without particular inclination to any game.

Support “I call it unparalleled passion since I loved every game. I played netball, volleyball; I would participate in paralympics and even throw shot-put. I often watched football and thought I could be a striker if I had the ability,” she says fondly remembering her favourite times when her school would

bring her to Joy-lands Kisumu for various sporting activities, something she says shaped her path. In 2002 and with the support of a relative, she managed to purchase a sewing machine even though she did not have tailoring skills. “I really wanted a fruitful venture that would give me instant independence. I pushed myself to acquire a machine because I thought it the only driving force to getting tailoring skills faster,” Akoth says adding that she looked forward to helping other people who had a similar problem. Fortunately, she met Grace, an old friend and a graduate of the Sisterhood for Change beauty therapy and hairdressing (SFC) who referred her to Kisumu Medical Education Trust (KMET) where she was introduced to tailoring classes, crocheting and other home science skills including making soaps. Thanks to the training she received, Akoth now earns an average of KSh12,000 monthly from her tailoring business which she does from her house. She says this amount is little since she has to divide the time and effort to attend to her other ventures. Her clientele are majorly private owned early childhood education centres who award her tenders to make pupils’ uniforms. This she says has been possible owing to her reputation of being prompt and production of quality garments. She has a long-term tender with Elyon Nursery school where the children fondly refer to her as a ‘teacher’. She perceived a market gap in tailoring babies’ uniform which she said had an opportunity compared to those of older children in primary and secondary. “I am happy that I got the opportunity to be at Sisterhood for Change, they offered me a friendly environment without discrimination, I was taught a lot of life and entrepreneurial skills. We even got fed at the centre,’’ beams Akoth, who is 25 year old. She traces her success to the training she re-

Fenny Akoth throws shot-put during a competition at the Moi International Sports Centre in Kasarani, Nairobi ceived and expresses gratitude to the tutors who were understanding, patient and gave the best insight on how to earn from the garment making industry. Akoth also makes an average of 25 bags every month which can fetch up to KSh500 each depending on the size and design. The young entrepreneur is also a sports enthusiast and earns supplementary income from allowances she gets from being a centre-six- player in the national girls’ volleyball team for the physically handicapped, a position she says is the backbone of the team. She joined the team in the year 2002 drawn by fellow players who exuded beaming passion for games like she did. “I train in volleyball every day from 4.00pm to 6:00pm at the Kisumu Social Hall and this has helped horn my skills and emerge as the best

player for the group,” she says, with her sentiments being backed by Kisumu City Volleyball chairman, Anthony Oriwo Riako. As any business person would attest, Akoth faces challenges that come with handling many responsibilities. These include rescheduling her tailoring business when practicing for volleyball, an issue she says disrupts her deadlines. However, she opted to employ an assistant to help speed up the work and stand in during her absence. She also believes that in the next five years she will be an employer of more than five girls from Sisterhood For Change and a major distributor of garment material within town. Akoth is also taking care of her niece who is a pupil at Nyamonye Primary School in Bondo. She pays her tuition fees, tailors her clothes and avails other provisions. She is also saving for her secondary education.

Christine Mawia Feted for exemplary service in nursing care

…By Nzinga Muasya

er dedication to care for new-born children has won her the coveted International Neonatal Nursing Excellence Award. The award was a major boost to Christine Mawia, who three years ago won two local nursing awards for her remarkable nursing skills. Mawia who is the nurse in-charge of the neonatal care unit at the Kitui District Hospital received the award at a ceremony held in Belfast, Northern Ireland, on September 6, 2013 where nurses from around the world congregated for the eighth International Neonatal Nursing Conference. Together with Anila Ali Bardai, a counterpart from Pakistan, Mawia received the top award from Northern Ireland Health Minister Edwin Poots. Netsayi Gowero from Malawi was the runners-up. Mawia was not only feted for her excellent work but also for her teaching and mentoring skills to mothers to curb infant mortality. Her efforts saw infant mortality rate at the hospital reduce from 50 per cent in 2010 to below 10 per cent last year. “When I was a school girl I dreamt of becoming a nurse someday to help mothers and new-borns. I am happy this dream has come true,” she said on returning back to her workstation. In 2010, Mawia was crowned the district nurse of the year before winning the Eastern Province nurse of the year in the same year. “I was also feted by the National Championship in New Born Health in December last year,”

she said with a beaming face. Mawia started the new-borns unit at the district hospital from scratch in 2010 but little did she know that it would be transform into an independent nursery, which would make her a proud health worker few years later. The International Neonatal Nursing Excellence Award was established in 2009 by the Council of International Neonatal Nurses (COINN) and Save the Children to recognise nurses for their commitment to saving mothers and new-borns during childbirth in some of the harshest places to work in the world.

Beginning Mawia and the other two nurses were selected for their exemplary leadership and passion for ensuring every new-born has a chance to survive and thrive. Speaking at the ceremony, COINN President Karen New said: “All the three women work in newborn care units in busy referral hospitals to provide health care to under-served populations. In such settings, the health care has to be developed and defended by committed professionals.” According to Celestine Mwaburi, Deputy Nursing Officer-in-charge at Kitui District Hospital, Mawia is an aggressive and self-driven nurse who works without supervision. Her drive was enhanced when she received training at the Pumwani Maternity Hospital newborns unit and Kenyatta National Hospital. She learnt that most new-born deaths are preventable

and it depends on the skills and commitment of those looking after the infants. “I vowed to use all means at my disposal to prevent such deaths. It is unfortunate that very few nurses dedicate themselves to care for newborns,” said Mawia, a mother of two daughters who is married to Sammy Kasyima from Mwingi area of Kitui County.

Interventions Save the Children Country Director Duncan Harvey congratulated Mawia for employing basic but effective interventions to curb child mortality in Kenya. COINN’s aim is to recognise nurses who exhibit commitment in saving mothers and newborns during delivery, especially in developing countries. Neonatal nursing involves caring for infants up to 28 days after birth.

Christine Mawia, a nurse at Kitui District Hospital displays some of her certificate and trophy. Below:she attends to a new born baby at the hospital's neonatal care unit. Pictures: Nzinga Muasya

Each year, three million new-born die during the first month of life, exclusive of the additional 2.6 million babies who are stillborn.

Issue Number 41 • October 2013

Widow reclaims land lost to in-laws

…By Gilbert Ochieng

nviolatta Awino Juma, a widow from Marachi East Location, Butula subCounty of Busia is a happy woman, thanks to legal support that saw her reclaim her matrimonial home. She recalls that how her inlaws ejected her from the home shortly after her husband’s death in 2003. Flanked by her five children, the widow recounted the painful experience in the hands of her in-laws who ganged up against her a few days after the death of her beloved husband, Juvenalis Onyango Omoto. They forced her out of the matrimonial home with her children. As if that was not enough, the in-laws, one of them a teacher at a local primary school, another one a businessman at the local market and another one, an employee at the defunct County Council of Busia proceeded to demolish her kitchen and house where the children had been sleeping.

“Before evicting me and my children from the home, my inlaws harvested the maize in my farm which they sold after which they ploughed the entire homestead and later planted crops,” said Awino. The move forced her to stay in a sugarcane plantation for a couple of days. With nowhere to turn to, Awino decided to seek the assistance of the area chief who blatantly refused to come to her aid and instead supported the in-laws. “My hopes to have the chief resolve the matter were dashed when he told me off saying his hands are tied and that he was not in a position to help me because according to their culture I had no right to own land at my matrimonial home,” recalls Awino.

Option The chief advised her that the only option left was for her to pack up and go back to her father’s home. After failing to get assistance from the chief, the des-

perate widow opted to seek redress from the District Officer. Her efforts did not bear any fruit as the area chief had fed him with falsehoods. “The District Officer who seemed to have been fed with lies by the chief simply told me to go away with the promise that they would look into the matter later,” said Awino. However, determined to find a solution, she decided to seek assistance from Rural Education Enhancement Programme (REEP) a nongovernmental human rights organisation operating in the Inviolata Awino, a widow, area under the directorship of pointing at her shamba that Mary Makokha. her in-laws had attempted to After narrating her story, the organization hired a lawyer grab following the death of her who quickly filed the case before husband. Below: She is holding a Busia court. The Court ruled one of her children outside their in her favour and she was able to house. Pictures: Gibert Ochieng reclaim the three acre parcel of land owned by the husband. ment Programme has pledged Awino’s case typifies myr- to continue to fight for the iad of human rights violations rights of the less privileged in by people who are supposed to the society especially women uphold the law. and children and shield them Rural Education Enhance- from abuse.

Is vasectomy the answer to family planning?

…By Carolyne Oyugi

hen Kenya got independence 50 years ago, the population stood at 8.1million people only. The population has however grown by 432 percent over the years. According to World Bank, from 1960 until 2012, Kenya Population averaged 22.1 Million reaching an all time high of 43.2 Million in December of 2012 and a record low of 8.1 Million in December of 1960. World Bank further explains that the population of Kenya represents 0.60 percent of the world´s total population which arguably means that one person in every 168 people on the planet is a resident of Kenya.

Reality These are not just figures but a reflection of what is happening on the ground and what is expected in the future. For a government to properly plan for its citizens the population should have enough resources to support it. Kenyans are however scrambling over natural resources like land, job opportunities and facilities like schools and hospitals. These figures have been a headache to the government and some efforts have been put in terms of family planning. As much as the government has come up with many family planning programs there are still many challenges with funding and the uptake of contraceptives. In July 2011, 185 MPs met in Mombasa and adopted the “Kenya’s Draft National Policy on population 2011-2030”. Kenya parliament passed the session paper no 3 of 2012 on population and national development which limits family size. Year in and year out, Kenyan government ministries including the Ministry of Health (MOH) present their budget proposals, supposedly based on

the priorities and needs of the Kenyan population. In fact, the government developed a National Family Planning Costed Implementation Plan 2010-2015 to reposition family planning within the national development agenda. This plan however seems unrealistic and does not achieve its objective of guiding the budgeting process for contraceptives. Looking at the recent trends in budget allocation and expenditures towards family planning and contraceptives in Kenya, the funds allocated are meager and nowhere near the proposed plans. Moreover, the funds for 2010/11, 2011/12 and 2012/13 financial years have been constant at Kshs 575,025,000 (approximately $6.5 million), with Kshs 522,750,000 ($5.9 million) allocated towards procurement of contraceptives and Kshs 52,275,000 ($589,000) allocated towards distribution of family planning. This flat funding begs the question of whether the government is serious about providing family planning services to all women and men. Research conducted by Health Rights Advocacy Forum (HERAF) on the government investment toward contraceptives found that the contraceptive budgeting process by the Ministry of Health, Department of Reproductive Health (DRH), and development partners tend to be dictated by bureaucratic processes. These results in budgets based on inadequate revenue and budget ceilings not on DRH key priorities.

Benefits According to the Kenya Demographic Health Survey 2008-2009 (KDHS), about 25 percent of married women want to prevent pregnancy but need contraception. Add this to the 46 percent who currently use family planning, and more than 70 percent of married women in Kenya want to limit or space their pregnancies. As

the trend toward smaller families continues and the number of women of reproductive age increases, the number of women using or desiring family planning will rise. Dr. Charles Ochieng’ however thinks that the solution to family planning problems is Vasectomy. He further explains that Kenya has a Maternal Mortality rate of 440/100000 live births and 24 percent of it is caused by bleeding. “The worst part of it is that 45 percent of these pregnancies are unplanned and unwanted according to KDHS 2009” he says. Dr. Ochieng’ who has also undergone vasectomy is saddened by the fact that the burden of family planning is left to women alone. “99.9percent of family planning is done by women alone and yet reproduction is a partnership of both man and woman” The father of two describes the other methods of family planning as biased towards women and against the spirit of social justice. Contraceptives, he says also has side effects and women at times fail to com-

Dr. Charles Ochieng (in a grey t-shirt) explaining the process of vasectomy to the public in Kisumu. Picture: Courtesy ply with the prescriptions especially for the everyday pills. “The contraceptives are also costly and are at times unavailable due to erratic supplies. BTL is more invasive than vasectomy. The women methods only protect one woman. Vasectomy protects wife plus more.” On the other hand the medic says that vasectomy is affordable, effective and permanent hence it gives one a chance to focus on career and family. “It shows deep commitment to relationship and partner and it is for responsible men” he said adding that mental freedom can enhance sexual performance. Other reasons why Dr. Ochieng’ is full of praises for this method which he has been campaigning for around the country are that it is the safest method known: no hormones, no opening abdomen, one kit can be used on thousands of men, it is autoclavable and after training any health care provider can perform it. If this process is this good then

why the low use of 0.1 percent only? Dr Ochieng’ attributes this to the lack of knowledge about the process that has given room to myths and misconceptions around it. Some of the myths are that it is castration, it makes people fat, it is for the educated, it is painful it is a breach of privacy and so many others that he says are all wrong. Dr Ochieng’ explains that the clients he has attended to are from all walks of life. Majority of them however do it due to economic burden that comes with a large family. Others do it due to the negative side effects of the Hormonal methods and majority are aged between 30 to 40 years. Vasectomy has however been embraced in other countries like Rwanda who are offering the services for free in public hospitals and the turn up is ‘impressive’ according to Dr. Ochieng. The procedure has become common such that the world marks World Vasectomy Day every 18th October.

Issue Number 41 • October 2013

The Double Tragedy

Women living with HIV in Loboi not having it easy …By Mary Mwendwa

n her one roomed wooden house at Loboi Centre situated in Baringo County’s Marigat District, Rajael Kipkeroi, a single mother, lives with her six children aged between three and 12 years. Sacks of charcoal and logs of wood dot her small compound. She lives a few meters from Lake Bogoria which is famous for flamingos and hot springs. The water levels have risen in the recent past, something that is worrying her, because she may be forced to relocate…but to where? Kipkeroi was kicked out of her family home after her brothers denied her the right of being apportioned a parcel of land for building a house. Like other women who are single in the area, she resides in a small house within the shopping centre. “I sell charcoal to meet the needs of my large family. My children need food and education, and here I am, HIV positive,” says Kipkeroi who is chairlady of Loboi Support Group.

The struggle “The going has been rough for me since I was diagnosed with the HIV virus. I do not enjoy life like any other person. The ARVs that I take twice per day make me feel very tired especially if I have not eaten well,” she says. Kipkeroi started taking the Anti-retroviral (ARV) drugs which she obtained from Marigat District Hospital in 2004. She collects them every two months and is on a twice a day dosage. “Raising the KSh200 fare to access the Marigat health facility is a challenge most of the time,” she explains. Out of the six children she has, three of them belong to her late sister who died in 2004. That is the year that Kipkeroi also discovered that she was also living with the virus. The discrimination against people living with the Aids virus is disheartening. The single mother is restricted to selling charcoal as many people in the area shy away from employing people living with HIV. She cannot get even a casual job. “One afternoon after a long walk in the sun I entered a homestead and asked for some water to quench my thirst. The occupants were kind enough to give me some water. After I had taken the water and returned the cup, I was shocked to hear the owner of the house tell her son to throw the cup in the toilet.” Individuals living with HIV are not accepted and they are treated differently from other people who are sick from other diseases in the community. People fear mingling with HIV infected people for fear of being infected. Kipkeroi notes that those living with HIV and Aids are secluded from many community gatherings. According to the Kenya Aids epidemic update 2011, one of the factors that contribute to HIV infections among women is their heightened physiological susceptibility to sexual HIV transmission. Women and girls confront an array of social, legal, economic and cultural disadvantages that compound their HIV related risks and vulner-

abilities. On average, Kenyan women and girls are less knowledgeable than males regarding HIV and are less likely to use condoms. The women in Loboi face a lot of stigmatisation. However, they find solace from the Loboi Support Group, an association of 12 women. Most of the women are widowed and take care of children orphaned by HIV. The women keep each other company, encourage one another to edge on with life and brainstorm on how to manage their status and improve their standards of living. Tarkok Nyargis, a widow in her late 50s and a mother of nine explains: “We formed this group in order to improve our lives. We face many challenges as women who live with the HIV virus. The biggest burden is how to access our drugs; we are in a remote village where there is no working health facility. We only get our drugs at Marigat, which is far from this village.”

Funds The group runs a poultry project. Proceeds accrued from the project are partly used to support members who cannot raise fare to access a health facility for ARV drugs to do so.

Tarkok Nyargis, a member Loboi Support Group. The group runs a poultry project. Proceeds accrued from the project are partly used to support members who cannot raise fare to access a health facility for ARV drugs. Picture: Mary Mwendwa. “We keep chicken and sell them around here. The money we get helps our needy members access medication and health facilities,” explains Mary Kangop, a widow and a mother of six in her early 40s. However, the poultry business has not been doing well as the the chicken have been dying as a result of an infection passed on from flamingos on Lake Bogoria. “Unemployment, displacement and HIV infections have contributed to a large number of children who cannot get basic needs,” observes Simon Cheserek, programme officer at Marigat Family Help Project. Marigat District has a high number of orphans who seek help from his organization. “We work with community groups like Loboi Support Group. We give them seed money to start small projects to empower them economically. This has helped to a better extent in taking care of the needs of orphans and other vulnerable children,” says Cheserek.

“We keep chicken and sell them around here. The money we get helps our needy members access medication and health facilities.” Mary Kangop, a widow and a mother of six

He observes that children orphaned by HIV are on a steady increase in the area noting that some parents die because they cannot access health support systems on time. Another challenge is the fact that the male survivors do not easily accept their HIV status once they are confirmed positive. Many live in denial hence this has contributed to more infections among couples. A clinical officer at the Comprehensive Care Centre within Marigat District Hospital notes how it is very difficult for them to do a follow up on their patients. Some patients have been displaced from their homes while others just vanish without trace, out of despair. The hospital does not have sufficient and accurate data of HIV infected persons partly due to the fact that Marigat is a large district that serves several locations. Those who visit the facility are counselled and tested. If they turn out to be positive with a CD 4 count that is less than 350 cc/15/mm3, they are immediately introduced to ARVs. As Kenya struggles to achieve its millennium development goals by 2015, HIV transmission remains a challenge to many rural communities who are at risk of being infected. The author is a freelance journalist. Courtesy of the African Executive

Executive Director: Arthur Okwemba

The Kenyan Woman is a publication of African Woman and Child Feature Service E-mail: info@awcfs.org www.awcfs.org

Managing Editor:

Jane Godia

Sub-Editors:

Duncan Mboya, Faith Muiruri and Carolyne Oyugi

Contributors:

Omondi Gwengi, David Njaaga, Omar Mwalago, George Owoti, Bob Ombati, Joseph Mukubwa, Robert Nyagah, Diana Wanyonyi, Benson Mwanga, John Ndeta, Mourice Alal, Nicole Waithera, Agnes Quisumbing, Ben Oroko, Lenah Bosibori, Henry Owino, Tsitsi Mhlanga, Tess Antrim-Cashin.

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