Kenyan Woman Issue 25 by African Woman & Child Feature Service

Issue Number 25 • April 2012

Power of women mobilising G10 shines in New York as delegates marvel the principle of sex boycott

…By Rosemary Okello

hen women organisations under the G10 Coalition called for a sex boycott in April 29, 2009 to catch the attention of the two principals — namely the President and the Prime Minister — the idea was to pressure them to engage in reforms and give Kenyans a new Constitution. It was also meant to put an end to political feuding that had gone on

for too long. As expected, a significant part of the public reacted with dismay and disgust at what the women were saying. The media on the other hand reported the sex boycott not only locally but globally as well. However, this strategy, in a culture where sex is not spoken about publicly, created a lasting impact and was of much interest and discourse during the 56th UN Commission on the Status of Women held in New York last month. The G-10 Coali-

tion members showcased how they were able to use the sex boycott to get the women’s voices heard right from the grassroots level on an issue of national importance. The high level panel session was attended by over 55 delegates from various parts of the world. Executive Director of the Caucus for Women Leadership, Deborah Okumu, a member of the G10 informed the panel that the sex boyContinued on page 4

Women who have been mobilised to a conference to chart the way for their political dispensation in line with the new constitution. The G-10, a coalition of women’s organisations, has used the power of mobilising to get women’s voices heard. Pictures: KenyanWoman Correspondent

Issue Number 25 • April 2012

EDITORIAL Confusion over polls date must not derail women from achieving their agenda

enyan voters and especially women politicians eying the next general elections are now more confused than ever. The issue of the date is still controversial with one camp supporting the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission March, 2013, date, while the others is lobbying for a December 2012 date. However, the most affected by the on-going debate are women politicians and voters who are wondering when the above issues will be resolved so that the affirmative action clause in the Constitution issue can be addressed and resolved. Just like the elections’ date that has been in dispute, so is the affirmative action hanging in the balance as women wait for legislation on the same to written.

Dilemma Aspiring women politicians for the elective and the special seats are in a dilemma and do not know when and how to start launching their campaigns or declaring their parties of choice. Majority are at a crossroad of whether they should go for the county assembly, parliamentary, governor or senate. The stakes are indeed very high. Women leaders should emulate and promote each other before the political landscape becomes crowded and more competitive. However, one mistake that the women aspirants should not make is to leave the elective seats to men and only settle for the seats reserved for their gender. Kenya has had torch bearers who have proved that politics is not the preserve of men by facing them head on at the presidential, parliamentary and civic elections. Grace Onyango, the first female mayor and MP; Julia Ojiambo, first woman appointed as an Assistant minister, Phoebe Asiyo, first woman to trounce a powerful Kanu national official twice at the polls; Nyiva Mwendwa, first woman Cabinet minister; and Charity Ngilu, who made history by having her name on the presidential ballot paper against President Moi (now retired.)

Above So it is possible, and more women should rise above the cacophony of ethnicity being promoted by some powerful politicians and instead start popularising their candidature early. The new Constitution is a blessing for the women, thanks to the affirmative action clause, but it would be of no use if the beneficiaries sit on their laurels by not using its provisions effectively for their benefit. There is no doubt that the next elections, whether it is held this year or next year, will be a turning point in the country’s history as for the first time, voting will be for six different candidates as opposed to the former style of the “three-piece-suit” that had councillor, MP and President. Women leaders should rise to the occasion and work round the clock to ensure that the one-third provisions in the Constitution reserved for their gender is achieved come the polls, no matter when it will be. As the adage goes: “foretold is forewarned.”

Women now ready to occupy more positions …By Henry Kahara

or a long time, women in East Africa have been kept on the sidelines of leadership positions despite the fact that they make huge contributions towards political, economic and social spheres. With this also comes the fact that they are the majority in number, making slightly over 50 percent of the total population. Naturally, they are also the bulk of voters. However, women continue to be relegated to the periphery. In Kenya, it can be remembered that in the struggle for self-determination, women supported the cause in various ways.

Legislator Yet in the 1963 General Election, not a single woman was elected to Parliament. It was until 1969 when the first woman, Grace Onyango was elected as Julia Ojiambo, chair of the Labour Party of Kenya, leads in celebrating the launch of the legislator. The 1974 General Election Women’s Charter. The document guides on how women would like to come out of the periphery of saw the number increase to four with the discrimination. election of Julia Ojiambo, Nyiva MwendPicture: KenyanWoman Correspondent. wa and Chelagat Mutai with Onyango getting her second term. The trend never changed much up to 1990s with the mulGovernment’s affirmative action of 30 percent (TAMWA) noted that the possibility of many tiparty regime. women holding higher office in Parliament rerepresentation. According to Charity Ngilu, MP for Kitui The people of Rwanda have made tremendous mains a nightmare. Other than women taking Central, this marked an extra mileage as far as improvement on the issue of children’s rights with up special seats, very few get elected when they women were concerned. particular reference to child marriages. Forced have to compete with men. “Before we had only one party, Kanu, which child-marriages are illegal with serious penalties It has been realised that women who join was male dominated and getting a nomination for sexual abuse. Furthermore, the country has politics through special seats are not necessarily ticket was a nightmare,” she recalls. programmes that educate the general public on accountable to the majority of women, particuNgilu expressed optimism that the number the values of equal rights. larly those who do not belong to political parties. of women in political and decision-making poLike Kenya, in Tanzania, women do not feasitions will increase due to the new Constitution ture very strongly in the country’s cabinet, which which does not allow more than two thirds of Uganda too has embraced women’s leader- is the main body that advises the President on one gender in public office. ship with 70 of its MPs being women. They were matters of government including public policy. Currently, Kenya has only 22 women mem- able to achieve this after enacting the affirmative However, with the new Constitution, women bers of Parliament compared with Uganda action policy on decision making. look forward to having more numbers, not only which has 70, Tanzania has more than 30 per In Tanzania, the introduction of special seats because of the women representative positions, cent while Rwanda has 56 percent. for women did not lead to an increased number but also because the parties will have to make Rwanda has the highest percentage of wom- of women in Parliament. A survey conducted sure that in the winning teams not more than two en representation in the world, surpassing its by the Tanzania Media Women’s Association thirds of the same gender are elected.

Number

Seek management positions in the tea industry …By Ben Oroko

omen farmers in Nyamira County have been challenged to seek leadership positions in the management for tea estates. According to Janet Orwenyo, a director at Sanganyi Tea Factory, the new Constitution gives women equal opportunities with men hence the need for women to seek leadership positions. “As farmers, women contribute over 70 percent to the labour force in the tea industry and this gives them a head start in managing the factories,” she notes.

Fear Speaking to KenyanWoman after her re-election for a third time, Orwenyo expressed fear on women’s continued failure to offer themselves for leadership positions in the region, especially in the tea sub-sector, yet they are the majority. Citing her re-election as a director in a male-packed race, Or-

wenyo challenged women from Gusii to register as shareholders in the Kenya Tea Development Authority (KTDA) run factories in the county to enhance their chances of seeking leadership positions in the industry which she said relied heavily on women’s labour.

Competition “I am a woman like any other in society and I have managed to win the competitive seat of directorship to Sanganyi Tea Factory Company Limited for the third round amid stiff competition from men,” said

A woman picks tea leaves from a farm. Women contribute the highest percentage of labour in the tea industry yet they are missing from management positions. Pictures: Ben Oroko Orwenyo. She posed: “Why not have other women take cue from me in all KTDA-run tea factories in the region to enhance their representation in

“As farmers, women contribute over 70 percent to the labour force in the tea industry and this gives them a head start in managing the factories.” — Janet Orwenyo

the KTDA boards of management?” Orwenyo is the only woman director out of the six directors at Sanganyi Tea Factory Company. She encouraged more women to come out to seek leadership positions not only in the tea industry but in other sectors of the economy as well since they have the numerical strength. “Women have the potential of competing with men for leadership positions in a fair and democratic field only if they come up with policies that can sway voters to their side,” observed Orwenyo.

Issue Number 25 • April 2012

Elizabeth Nyongesa Courting Trans Nzoia with a pledge for food security on her road to leadership …By George Omonso

etting to understand what women need is the biggest challenge that faces Elizabeth Nasimiyu Nyongesa. Having worked as a banker and a council town clerk in the past, Nyongesa remains passionate about challenges facing women, and especially the fact that they have not broken ranks into farming. Nyongesa intends to push for the introduction of small scale commercial farming ventures with emphasis on diversification of crops with high return per acre. “I would like to push for availability of credit and cheaper inputs for farm inputs as well as training for farmers on credit management,” she stresses.

Inspiration

She gets inspiration from the success of her husband, John Nyongesa who in spite of being a graduate with Economics and Mathematics from Nairobi and Dar es Salaam universities, has taken to farming as a profession. “It is time our people were told that farming is not a profession for illiterate people but it pays through rigorous management. Let us for a start revamp the spirit of co-operatives with the aim of marketing produce more efficiently and profitably,” she argues. Nyongesa would like to use her position as an elected politician to mobilise women in the County to raise their own capital for economic activities. “With the contribution of two kilogrammes of maize or its equivalent, Trans Nzoia women can easily raise money with proper management and mobilisation,” Nyongesa observes. She adds: “The fund may even be higher with the introduction of well wishers and donors. Women can later decide on their own what they intended to do with this kitty.” Nyongesa would also like to pay special attention to the economic status of widows and single mothers with a view to making them economically independent. “Though we have sprinkles of agro-based industries, with our potential in agriculture, what we have is a drop in the ocean. This will not only reduce unemployment but also bring the much needed value addition for the economic growth of the county,” she observes. She calls for the establishment of a monitoring, evaluation and feedback to assess what progress the blue print is making. An advocate of vocational training centres at village level, Nyongesa would like to see the institutions equipped to facilitate young people with skills in income generating activities. “I want a programme that will promote and improve adult education especially among women and particularly which will enhance their skills in trade and farming.

Water

To address women’s issues, Nyongesa observes that households must have access to clean piped water to reduce prevalence of waterborne diseases and give women more time to spend on income generating activities. Nyongesa believes that Trans Nzoia is among the poorest counties in the country. Although she has experience having worked in the County through the official and church circles, she thinks that Saboti people failed to elect her in 2007 because of male chauvinism and patriarchy that has failed to recognise women’s leadership. “Winning through the women’s seat, now creates a fair playing ground which keeps women battling alone while men keep their interests elsewhere. We need leaders who are close to the people, good listeners and team players,” she reiterates.

Nyongesa, who lives in Kiminini, has four adopted children, orphans whom she has fostered who are now almost completing their secondary school education. The cheerful way by which they dominate the home, camouflages their foster status and those who have concluded that the four are the ‘only’ children in the family have every reasons to do so.

Orphans

Unknown to many, the youthful looking mother of eight has successfully educated all her siblings to university level and beyond and the orphans are now filling the void left in the homestead by ‘the real owners’. The first born Joseph Mecca is an IT specialist in Nairobi while the second born Collins Mecca is working for the Kenya Airways. Within a period of 15 years, Nyongesa has stepped in almost every other university in the country and beyond to witness the graduation of the other six children, Ann, Lucy, Paul, Samuel, Joshua and David. If another parent were to achieve such a feat she would have sighed with relief, put the sign of the cross and sat pretty in readiness of tapping from her previous sweat. However, this was not the case with Nyongesa. “I just reawakened to the realities of mother nature, I became lonely. In ordinary circumstances with eight children, I would have started nursing grandchildren, but since all my children jumped the nest, I realised just how badly I needed company and the need to foster came as the only alternative,” recalls Nyongesa with nostalgia. The children aside, Nyongesa now has her eyes trained on the Trans Nzoia County politics as the women’s representative, a position that has so far attracted six key contenders.

Education

Born in Bungoma, Kimilili 62 years ago, Nyongesa went to Misikhu and Kahuhia Girls’ High schools before joining the Kenya Commercial Bank in 1973. She later joined Nairobi University and completed her Bachelor of Commerce in 1975. However, it was while at Kahuhia that Nyongesa came face to face with stereotypes. She made a vow that never within her ability would she allow a human being to be unduly humiliated because of her place of origin. She recalls the day she went to join the school. During the admission, a white woman in charge was not amused to hear that I came from Western Province and asked tongue in cheek “you mean you come from Western, certainly what good can come from that part of the country?” These were the welcoming remarks that came from the White woman that left Nyongesa wondering what ills had the people from Western committed to deserve that collective condemnation. It was not easy for Nyongesa as the same woman would later teach her literature. She disliked the teacher and subject to the extent that she failed the principal subject at her A Level. The experience in Central Province was not easy. Nyongesa’s baptism by fire is completely different from the one who was later to climb the ladder and become the first African woman clerk at the Nzoia County Council. This she later transformed through fiscal discipline and retired when the local authority had KSh100

Elizabeth Nyongesa, a leader from Trans Nzoia County who is aspires to be the women representative. Ensuring that women have food for the family and extra to sell is among her top priorities. Picture: George Omonso.

million in its fixed deposit account at a time when peer civic authorities were rotting under mismanagement and external debts. Before joining the Nzoia County Council, Nyongesa worked as a treasurer at the Kitale Municipal Council and Vihiga Municipality. At each of the above places Nyongesa exhibited exemplary leadership qualities.

School

At Kitale Municipality, she instilled high levels of financial discipline and because of her strict audits, all the monies collected at various stations ended up in the Council coffers. By ensuring that children of staff members went to school without any delay in paying salaries, excited staffers named some of their children after her and her parents. She was to take the same leadership to Vihiga where she cleared workers’ one-year salary arrears within four months. She also initiated and completed various Local Authority Trust Fund (LATF) projects including construction of classrooms, bridges and feeder roads in 10 wards. “It is not that I am seeking leadership for the sake of it, I have a track record that speaks volumes and a tested legacy which we can replicate,” Nyongesa notes. She explains: “I am through with the family and soon my foster children will make their exit, my service in the public service has no blemish and it is now time for me to serve my people.”

“Winning through the women’s seat, now creates a fair playing ground which keeps women battling alone while men keep their interests elsewhere. We need leaders who are close to the people, good listeners and team players.” — Elizabeth Nyongesa, Trans Nzoia County.

At Nzoia County Council, Nyongesa is remembered for the purchase of heavy duty machinery like earth movers and fleet of vehicles to enhance delivery of service. She introduced staff motivation programme through e-learning and today she boasts of her former secretary, cashier and accountant all of whom have completed university studies and now occupy higher and better paying offices. Community workers recall how Nyongesa used her office at the council to create a special kitty for poor people suffering from HIV/Aids and destitute children’s education. “From this fund, an orphaned Sudanese Boy was educated up to Form Four and now fends for himself,” she recalls. However, what locals credit Nyongesa most for is her determination to get the Ministry of Local Government approve employment of employees who had worked for a long time in the Council as casuals to permanent terms. Almost 20 people benefited from this collective bargain arrangement.

Poverty

To address poverty levels in Trans Nzoia, Nyongesa recommends an enhanced schoolfeeding programme to attract more children to school and keep them there in times of famine. She wants both boys and girls to get quality education. Nyongesa intends to fight for a local education bursary fund to supplement the government sponsored one and to include contributions from the corporate world, local people and well wishers. Perhaps these are the ideas that make her presence mandatory in organisations like Lake Victoria Water Services Board as well as Kiminini Cottage Hospital and several secondary boards. She is also a national delegate for Maendeleo ya Wanawake.

Issue Number 25 • April 2012

G10 shines in New York as delegates marvel the principle of sex boycott Continued from page 1

cott was not about the act of boycotting sex but the principle in which it was used to create attention. “Whereas many argued and are asking whether we were successful with our sex-boycott, the fact that every Kenyan including the leaders talked about it is important because to us we achieved our goal,” she explains. According to Okumu, the ‘sexboycott’ showcased that women’s organisations have the power to position themselves politically and successfully on national issues when they are united and speak with one voice both at national and grassroots level.

Campaign Supporting Okumu’s sentiment, Rukia Subow, Chair of Maendeleo ya Wanawake, reiterated that the campaign helped reinvigorate the women’s movement in Kenya into a dynamic social pressure group. “I received calls from my community since I am a Muslim and women proclaiming to Islam are not supposed to boycott sex. What I told them was that the campaign was not explicitly about the act but it was a principle,” Subow explains. She adds: “This even made members of my family who were to get married during the campaign week to postpone the marriage in agreement with what the women were asking for.” According to Subow, the fundamental thing is the recognition of the use of numbers and the very nature of ruralness which made the Kenyan women to start engaging with the Constitutional review process when the call for political reforms started gaining momentum. Such was the involvement and the visible participation of the Kenyan women which not only sent a political signal but also made the then Head of State, Daniel arap Moi say that the Constitution which is being advocated for must resonate with Wanjiku — the woman at the grassroots.

Seriousness According to Myra Karani from the Young Women Leadership Institute (YWLI), whereas people who did not believe in the campaign were referring to the G10 members as old women, frustrated and divorcees, the face of the young women taking part in the sex-boycott brought in the seriousness of the matter. “We gave a press statement to the media on why the young people

are supporting sex-boycott even though this was termed as immoral but we were able to pass the message across. We also used the social media to ensure that young women joined in the campaign,” explains Karani. Just to show how the women’s movement was reinvigorated, since the composition of G-10 as women’s movement organisation brings together women at national level and also at grassroots level, the sex-boycott helped to lay the ground to advocate for the current Constitution which has a lot of gains for women. Commissioner Catherine Mumma of the Constitution Implementation Commission (CIC) attributed the women’s gains in the Constitution to women’s organisations coming together to push for the new Constitution. “Due to the networks that G10 has built around the country, it was easy to mobilise all women to vote for the Constitution during the referendum in 2010 because of the gains and opportunities which are in the new Constitution,” noted Mumma.

Respect

Delegates from various countries going through the G-10 brochure. Below: Delegates from Kenya who included Catherine Mumma, a Commissioner with the Constitution Implementation Commission and Carole Ag’eng’o of International Women’s Programme at the Commission on the status of women in New York where the G-10 made a presentation.

Once the Constitution of Kenya was promulgated in August 2010, G10 became the first movement to take the issue of judicial nomination by the President to the High Court with an aim of restoring respect for the rule of law and protecting the dignity of the Constitution. The G10 petitioned the President’s nominations which were set for approval and eventual appointment to the office of the Chief Justice, Attorney General, the Director of Public Prosecutions and the Comptroller of Budget under the Constitution of the republic. For the first time in the history of Kenya, everyone referenced the G-10 case. Even Parliament used it as a test case to overturn the President’s nominations. Commissioner Mumma informed the session that the Constitution of Kenya 2010 (COK 2010) recognises gender as one of the principles and has taken cognisance to all the international instruments which have now become part of the Kenyan law. With this the women of Kenya, especially those in the rural areas, have the opportunity to realise their rights. “However, the work is now on the legislations and laws which are going to be passed in Parliament to operationalise the Constitution,” explains

Pictures: Rosemary Okello.

Mumma. She notes: “If the women are not careful, the laws might weaken the gains which they already have.” The session was also informed how G-10 was able to raise the stakes for women’s issues from the sub-structure to the national political structure and also in monitoring the one-third principle which has been stipulated in the Constitution. According to Commissioner Jane Kiano of the National Cohesion and Integration Commission, the women of Kenya have perfected the art of organising around issues that affect them and those of national importance. This is why Maendeleo ya Wanawake, an organisation which she has been part of for many years has been able to leverage women’s voices from the grassroots to the national level. A delegate from Mozambique wondered how the women in her

country can work together with their leaders something which she found very unique in the way the Kenyan women parliamentarians are working together with the women civil society organisations and also how the CSOs are also able to work with the government so easily. Sentiments from Russia and USA were raised around how successful the sex-boycott in Kenya was and were happy to hear from the women how this has impacted on the women collective responsibility and their work around governance and ensuring that the voices of the grassroots inform their work. “As a delegate from Russia representing the Russian women, I can say that we have a lot to learn from the Kenyans. As you might know some

of us are Muslims and sex-boycott is not permitted under Islamic law but I am glad to hear that it was not the act but the principle.” Kenyan delegates informed the session that movement building can provide several important points for women to engage with the Government and other stakeholders. It can also bring in the issue of building a wide cluster of collective actors including rural women and therefore complementing on the exiting best practices that exist at the grassroots level. More fundamentally, it can help in leveraging the women’s voices through the media on national debates and making women visible hence ensuring that the public gets to hear women’s side of the story.

Historical injustices have affected road to political appointments

…By Duncan Mboyah owing to pressure from women’s rights advocates and the international community to have a gender commission in place, the Government finally set up one. Among other things, the National Commission on Gender and Development (NCGD) mission is to initiate proposals and advise on the strengthening of institutional mechanisms which promote gender equity and equality in all spheres of life and in particular, access to and benefits in education and healthcare, nutrition, shelter, employment and control of economic and national resources.

The Commission is now under the Kenya Human Rights Commission as enacted by the new Constitution and will look into gender inequality and discrimination.

Public

In recent times and in accordance with the Constitution, all public jobs are advertised in the mainstream media and interviews for those shortlisted conducted in public under the glare of media cameras. In tendering applications for the jobs, women have tended to shy away from applying for the top positions. Those who have dared apply have only gone for the position of deputy or vice.

As a result, Kenyans have blamed women for failing to apply for advertised jobs hence creating the impression that women do not have the qualifications to occupy top positions. According to the Vice Chairman of Safina Party of Kenya Dinah Awuor, even though women have the relevant academic qualifications, their problem emanates from historical injustices of discrimination.

Past

She blames the way women have been brought up in the past, something that has stuck with a number of them whenever they intend to make some decisions in life.

She says others are uncomfortable with the manner in which the questions are asked during interviews.

Private

“A recent interview for the position of Supreme Court Judges and the position of the Chief Justice and his deputy further complicated the matter for women given that majority are private and do not want their family issues brought in the limelight,” she observes. According to Awuor, probing details of one’s family background is viewed by women as demanding too much whereas for men the questions are accommodated and rarely dwell on marital status.

From time immemorial women have always applied for jobs such as teaching, secretarial, nursing and office attendants that allow them time to balance family matters.

Politics

Awuor notes many women would like to seek elective positions but are uncomfortable with the manner in which men run politics in this country. “Politics has been treated as a male domain by men who fear challenges from women and have made winning an election a highly violent affair that tends to keep women away,” she explains. Resources are another challenge that is cited as being a draw-

back to women who are aspiring for political positions. According to Awuor women lack the money to run elections successfully as “the archaic Constitution we had in the past denied them an opportunity to seek for a loan from the banking intuitions”.

Funds

“This denial made women even forget how to employ techniques of mobilising funds for their campaigns,” she notes. However, Awuor says the trend is likely to change since promulgation of the Constitution that allows women to own land and inherit property, meaning they can also get loans using their land title deeds as collateral.

Issue Number 25 • April 2012

Lack of resources hinders women aspirants

…By Bob Ombati

he International Women’s Day was celebrated a few days ago. While the day is supposed to bring joy on achievements towards women’s empowerment, for majority of ambitious Gusii women there is no silver lining in the clouds. The women are not sure that they will vie for elective positions owing to the hurdles on their way. The post independence Kenya has seen women leaders consigned to the periphery with men dominating top elective and appointive seats despite women forming the bulk of the population. However, the Constitution today has given women aspiring for political and decision making positions hope of competing on a level playing ground with their male competitors for elective and appointive positions.

Visible The provision that either of the gender should not exceed two thirds in representation for elective and appointive posts accords women a chance to be visible in the country’s leadership at all levels. However, as the country goes through constitutional implementation and preparing for the general elections, women gunning for various seats are likely to be locked out owing to poverty. Lack of resources and money has perennially dogged women, hampering their progress and participation in politics, leadership and governance. For a long time Martha Kerubo, who has been in politics since 2002 under National Labour Party has longed to be a councillor but has never made it despite two attempts. Kerubo, who is the party’s Deputy

National Secretary for Women’s Affairs has never dared contest for any elective position due to lack of funds that are needed for campaigns. However, there is a ray of hope at the end of the political tunnel for her. Kerubo is banking her hope on being nominated by her party as a County representative so that she can save funds to use for campaigns in subsequent elections. “You can be a good leader with wonderful policies but get stuck due to poverty. One needs money to hire and fuel vehicles to campaign and sell their policies to the electorate,” says Kerubo.

Culture She says since independence, no woman has ever been elected to Parliament from Gusii community, noting that retrogressive cultures have hindered women’s political ambitions and participation in the country’s leadership. Kerubo recalls that the only woman lawmaker to be nominated by Kanu in 1992 was Catherine Nyamato. Since then, no woman from Gusii has seen the inside of Parliament despite their numerous attempts and numerical strength. Kerubo would like the government, political parties and civil society organisations to fund women’s political campaigns for primaries to enable them qualify for nominations and compete with men for elective positions. She is ready to vie for any position and believes that with proper support she will have an opportunity to sell her policies and convince the voters. Kerubo challenges male politicians and husbands whose wives are seeking elective positions to support them and discard retro-

gressive cultural practice linking women only to child bearing, caring and kitchen. “Women are no longer in kitchen. They have moved to the board rooms, schools, colleges, universities and are equipped with professional and leadership skills to lead the country,” observes Kerubo. She challenged women to be ambitious and claim their rightful share in the country’s leadership, stressing they can use their numerical strength to elect many of their own to all positions beginning with the wards, constituencies, senate and national assembly. According to Kerubo women aspirants should come up with summarised policies and articulate them before their electorate to prove their competence instead of leaving male competitors to dominate and steal the show, eclipsing them politically.

Confidence

She challenges the aspirants who campaign with their husbands to organise independent political rallies and ensure that their partners do not dominate the campaigns, stressing it confuses voters who see her as incompetent and at the mercy of her talkative husband. Kerubo’s feelings are shared by Gusii County Council nominated councillor, Josephine Ombati (ODM) who notes

that lack of confidence by some women aspirants has been their undoing whenever they seek elective positions. Ombati urges women politicians to advance their levels of education to be at par or exceed their male counterparts for them to compete effectively for appointive positions which require a certain level of education and professionalism. “We want many women to advance their education so that they can be appointed permanent secretaries, cabinet secretaries, corporation heads and other posts to serve the country better,” observes Ombati.

Poverty She concurs with Kerubo that majority of the women are poor and cannot sustain a serious political campaign without support to capture various elective positions in the counties and the National Assembly, adding women who have been elected or appointed to various posts have proved their competence, a shaming sceptics and critics. The civic leader advises women who are working and aspire for elective positions to save funds for their campaigns once they plunge into politics to avoid being disappointed. “Learn the rules of politics like reading newspapers, watching televi-

“We want many women to advance their education so that they can be appointed permanent secretaries, cabinet secretaries, corporation heads and other posts to serve the country better,” — Josephine Ombati

sion, listening to radio bulletins and researching to be informed besides learning in making speeches and articulating issues affecting their electorate,” she challenges.

Issues Ombati laments that some women leaders are indifferent to information and, therefore, unable to address issues objectively when taken to task by critical and inquisitive voters who want to test their knowledge in current affairs which informs future actions. Ombati is against the culture of handouts by some politicians who have perfected it to retain their political hold although they are not popular, stressing it denies visionary leaders a chance to lead the people and improve their welfare through sound economic and cultural policies. “I am happy that our youth are getting informed and empowered economically to avoid relying on handouts for survival,” notes Ombati, adding the culture of handouts will ‘die’ and be buried in oblivion. She urges Members of Parliament to enact tough laws against perpetrators of the culture of handouts, saying it will help voters elect their leaders without any undue influence.

Develop Ombati notes the development of any country relies on the type of leaders elected, adding that if they elect development conscious leaders, the country is bound to develop. She advises the electorate to elect their leaders based on policies and not handouts, asserting once they capture the elective posts, they will shun them and focus on recovering the huge amounts of money they dish out to capture seats.

Women urged to jump over retrogressive hurdles …By Hussein Dido

omen in Northern frontier have been urged to diversify their political aspirations. This comes after more and more women continue to express a desire to capture the position of County women representative. This is due to the fact that there are many other befitting positions created by the constitution in the devolved system of governance. Further, the women have also been urged to shun retrogressive cultural practices that hinder them from vying for elective positions. According to Joseph Onyango, District Commissioner Garba-Tulla, many women from the region shy off from seeking elective positions due to outdated cultural practices that bar them from competing with their male counterparts.

Pastoralists “Pastoralists have a perception that women should not be trusted to seek elective seats because they are viewed as children and that such role should only be given to men,” observed Onyango. The DC who was addressing the public during an occasion to mark this year’s International Women’s Day in Isiolo County challenged women to go for other elective positions other than that of women representative. The event was sponsored by Action Aid Kenya and Friends of Nomads International. Present during the meeting were those who are eyeing the position of women’s representative and they included Rahma Dida, Tiyah Galgalao and Mumina Konso.

According to Dida, though women represent a large percentage of voters in the region, none had made it to Parliament in the previous years because most of them shy away from taking up positions. She called on women to unite and discard their differences in order to take up the challenge and represent the interest of women in the devolved system of governance.

Bloc “Women in the region should vote as a bloc during the next general election in Traditional dancers perform to mark the International Women’s Day. Women have been called order to support one of their own willing upon to get out of the box and go for all positions within the electoral system. to take up the position of governor, senator Pictures: Hussein Dido and parliamentary seat,” challenged Dida. “It is disturbing [that] we are to blame for failing to come up with a single councilin the region are rough and women shy off from en was to blame for their failure to capture seats lor or even a chief because we are always divided supporting one of their own especially in this re- in the elective positions. Galgalao has supportand vote against our wish, while men continue gion where men have dominated politics. ed many students especially from poor families to take advantage of us and rule,” she observed. According to Galgalao who is also a former to excel in life while she was the principal at the Dida noted that she was hesitant to go for Commissioner with the Interim Independent Isiolo Girls’ Secondary School. She appealed to other positions in the county because campaigns Electoral Boundary divisions among the wom- the communities to support her bid for the position of the county women’s representative.

“It is disturbing [that] we are to blame for failing to come up with a single councillor or even a chief because we are always divided and vote against our wish, while men continue to take advantage of us and rule.” — Rahma Dida, women leader, Isiolo County

Graduate She noted that she was the only graduate pastoralist woman from the region who made it through the ladder from a poor background and landed the position of commissioner in the Interim Independent Electoral Boundary Commission through hard work. During the occasion, pastoralists women danced and recited the poems to motivate aspiring women to take up the challenge and overcome cultures that hinder them from going for elective positions.

Issue Number 25 • April 2012

It is imperative that women work on visibility

…By Betty Nehondo

ecent events in the country seem to have elicited a lot of enthusiasm among a section of women in Kenya. This is on account of the much taunted one third affirmative action principle within public and political positions. The 2009 population census and household report reveals that 50.03 percent of Kenya’s population is female. This population ratio, however, does not reflect the prevailing scenario in the area of both representative and appointive positions.

Energy To go down memory lane, I am inclined to borrow from Dr Jamil Masinde. In his works on The Role of Women in Rural Development in Kenya (1991), Masinde says that as far back as the colonial times, women in Kenya were encouraged and mobilised their energies for self and community development. Their tradition for collective and mutual assistance has always been traced within the traditional division of labour framework inherent in societies. This situation relegated women to family roles and performance of other domestic duties besides contributing labour to fellow women in land preparation, planting and harvesting. This has been the driving force behind their dominant role in the rural economy. They have also extensively participated and controlled rural trade although they lack security to acquire loans and

the means to participate in foreign trade and decision making. It is further in Masinde’s contention that “integration of women recognises their needs, contributions and potential”.

Disadvantaged The Constitution of Kenya 2010 and the Government per se has recognised women as a disadvantaged group and made them the target of privileged allocation of positions through the one-third minimum gender rule. However, a group of women I have sampled have shown ambition for leadership positions in our society since independence. Grace Onyango was the first woman mayor of Kisumu and later the first woman Member of Parliament. Margaret Kenyatta was the only ever female mayor of Nairobi City Council. Phoebe Asiyo was the first African woman prison’s warder officer and later MP for Karachuonyo. Dr Eunice Muringo Kiereini was Kenya’s long serving Chief Nursing Officer in the Ministry of Health who also became the first African to serve in the distinguished position of the President of International Council of Nurses. The late Prof Wangari Maathai was

the doyen of environmental conservation and Nobel Peace Laureate who was described as the perfect model of women’s power. Many others today are serving in various professional disciplines nationally and internationally. Involvement of women in political leadership can precisely be considered as a pale shadow of what would be expected considering the abundant female professional prowess that spans our country today. While Margaret Kenyatta and Grace Onyango’s rise to these influential positions may be considered the result of Kenya’s familial influence and Jaramogi Oginga’s ideological influence, the contemporary Kenyan female folk has all that it takes to occupy any representative leadership position in the land. The fact that there are less than ten percent females in Parliament today means that there are a number of shortcomings that need to be addressed.

Visibility The first shortcoming is lack of independent visibility which is the greatest undoing on the potential of women to catapult themselves to elective leadership positions. For most of them,

Involvement of women in political leadership can precisely be considered as a pale shadow of what would be expected considering the abundant female professional prowess that spans our country today.

their visibility starts at the family institution to school and college or university and ultimately ends with a public service or private service institution far away from their rural homes where voters live. When they go back later to try their luck, they are declared “unknown” to the people. Sometimes those who manage are those whose husbands are highly influential personalities who occasionally display them around or those who “sympathetically” inherit parliamentary seats when their husbands die. It is, therefore, imperative that women should work on visibility.

Strategy The second major shortcoming is lack of strategy and advocacy skills which is taken in the context of being able to analyse themselves, develop their own ideology at whatever level and market it. The ideologies should encompass issues which appeal to the rural and intellectual minds, have what is envisaged by society and carry along a mobilisation component with the capacity to develop press statements and releases and generally able to attract the media. In the course of taking action, they should be able to go through stages that include: issue building, solution platform building, identification of avenues of influence and forums as well as exertion of influence among others. Women should understand that there is a lot of power inherent in them that can be used to do power-mapping. With these, we can move out of allocated dependency to self-reliant independence. The author is a student at Moi University.

Women in Taita Taveta come out guns blazing

if only transparent and accountable leaders are elected. Reiterating the need for women in political and decision making positions, Maendeleo ya Wanawake Organisation second national vice chairperson Mercy Mwamburi and Sauti Ya Wanawake Coast Branch chairman Dorcas Gibran have challenged women to vie for senior positions created by the devolved system of government. They said the Governor and Senate positions were not a preserve of men and urged women to go for them. “We should stop playing second fiddle. We should compete with men who have for many years been dominating the politics scene and enhance our chances of decision making,” said the women leaders.

…By Benson Mwanga

ot so long ago, it was rare to hear women from Taita Taveta indicating interest of contesting political seats. Other than Dr Naomi Shabaan, current MP for Taveta, the women here have been seen as timid. However, with the recently opened space with the new constitutional dispensation, a number of women from Taita-Taveta County have indicated interest for political positions in the next General Election. At the same time the race for women’s representation is getting crowded and has attracted politicians, businesswomen, professionals and administrators.

Politics The region’s politics have for many years been dominated by male politicians. Out of the four constituencies, only Taveta is represented by a woman politician. The remaining constituencies including Voi, Mwatate and Wundanyi are represented by male politicians. Women who have declared interest claim male politicians have been using money to lure women to vote for them adding that this time round they are mobilising women and encouraging them to stand firm and vote for one of their own. Ambassador Esther Mshai Tolle has declared interest in going for the Senator position. Among her rivals are former cabinet minister Major (Rtd) Marsden Madoka and Mombasa businessman Mwakazi Mtongolo. “I will give the men a run for their money. It will not be easy for them to beat women this time round. We are currently carrying out civic education to not only sensitise women on their fundamental rights as enshrined in the Constitution but also make informed decisions in the General Elections,” notes Tolle, a former Permanent Secretary. “I have served in the public service for over 30 years and I am qualified and capable of being the first Senator in the County. Women are capable of leading this country and I am calling on women and youth to support my cause,” reiterated Tolle. “I am the right candidate for the seat going by my experience in government and those doubting my credibility are misguided.” If elected, Tolle says she will strive to improve the poor standards of education and also explore

Contest

Cabinet minister Naomi Shabaan (above) is also expected to contest a seat in the county. Picture: KenyanWoman Correspondent.

ways of addressing the high rate of unemployment among the youth. The position of women representative has so far attracted five candidates and they include a founder member of Maziwa Taita Trust and businesswoman Joyce Wanjala Lay and a former secondary school teacher Eileen Mwaita. Others include Joyce Mwangoji, Ann Kina and Christine Kilalo.

Meetings The women leaders have been busy holding strategic meetings in the region to win support from the local community. They have printed and distributed business cards bearing their portraits and inscribed with their vision and mission. The candidates have recruited agents in every sub-location to not only distribute the cards but also easily reach out to voters and sell their agenda. Lay says her vision and mission is to see a prosperous County with opportunities for all inhabitants and to achieve development of infrastructure, higher education standards at all levels, empowerment of youth, elderly and disadvan-

taged. A senior Rural Electricity Authority official Sophie Wali Kibai says she has what it takes to be the governor. “I have the experience in the management of public affairs which if given a chance as governor will help me effectively lead the county. I stand for development, stability and prosperity,” says Kibai in her business campaign cards. Speaking separately, the leaders underscored the need to start the County on the right footing if it was to be viable. They called on the local community to elect leaders of integrity if meaningful development was to be realised. “It is shameful to note that the region is endowed with enormous resources like the vast mines, wildlife and water bodies like the Mzima Springs but residents do not benefit. I will ensure proper legislations are enacted that will enable residents benefit from the resources to fight ravaging poverty,” added Lay. She says the County is one of the poorest in the country because of poor leadership, marginalisation and historical injustices, an issue that the devolved government will adequately address

“Women should not go for the position of women representative alone but contest for the senior positions like Senator or Governor,” observed Mwamburi. However, she said the number of women vying for various political positions in the next General Election has drastically improved and this was encouraging. Gibran urged women in the region not to fear men in their quest for leadership and instead come out and challenge them. “We have the numbers and we are going round the County sensitising the electorate to reject politicians who have been residing in urban centres,” said Gibran. She warned: “Some politicians who have been living in urban areas only come to rural areas during electioneering period. Do not expect to be elected if your base is in the urban centres.”

Practices Mwamburi and Gibran at the same time say women could equally serve this nation like men do but some cultural practices were hindering their efforts to ascend to power. “It is now time that ancient cultural values be avoided to give equal education opportunities to both boys and girls,” they said. While encouraging more women to vie for political positions in future, Mwamburi challenged them to start campaigning early enough. “Lack of empowerment has discouraged a number of women to fight for leadership positions with men but we are encouraging them that politics is not a preserve of men,” she said.

Issue Number 25 • April 2012

Eusebia Mwaniki:

Called to serve in Embu …By Grace Igandu

here is a refreshing wave of change blowing across Kenya as women are being called to participate in the political leadership, at the county level. Since promulgation of the Constitution that has entrenched affirmative action, a third of seats in the public office are set aside for one gender, in a bid to encourage equitable political representation. Eusebia Warue Mwaniki is one of the women who heeded this call by deciding to run as women’s representative for Embu County.

Empowerment Mwaniki, a former human resources manager felt the need to give back to the community and provide her services and skills for the sake of empowering the Waembu, with a particular focus on women. In 2009, Mwaniki retired from Oxford University Press and soon after embarked on a journey to assist those who needed help in the area. At the time, however, she had never dreamt of one day being a recognisable leader and was content with quietly interacting and aiding members of her community.

Seat This all changed when several people begun to urge her to seek a political seat so as to be able to better serve the county. “I was amazed at their advice but one person finally put everything in perspective for me,” she recalls. Her sister-in law urged her on, reiterating that she had over the years offered Embu families support on how they could improve their lives and become self-sufficient. “Why not do this at a larger scale… say, the whole of Embu?” her sister-inlaw inquired in earnest. After much thought, Mwaniki took a leap of faith and decided that she was going to run for a political seat.

Mwaniki’s call to serve was also stirred by the realisation that Governmental programmes meant to benefit the poor have failed to deliver due to poor policy-making and legislation as well as the preservation of a status quo within the country’s political arena. “However, all is not lost, as the Kenyan people now have a chance to promote their own capacity-building and to govern themselves at the county level,” she notes. What made her settle on running for the position of women leader and not any other position such as Governor or Member of Parliament? In response, Mwaniki explains that as a member of the Embu community, she has observed that for a long time, it is the ‘woman’ who carries most of the burden of caring for the family. “Women in Embu and in other rural settings create the family’s wealth by tilling the land, harvesting food and toiling as free labour on the county’s farms,” observes Mwaniki. She adds: “And yet the same women are not actively included in decisionmaking especially since men are recognised by the patriarchal society as the de facto leaders of the family.” Not to be misunderstood, Mwaniki acknowledges that men and women have different roles to play at the family level. However, that does not mean that women should not have a say in running the local economy. She further explicates that if men, women and the youth worked together, then they would go a long way in ensuring food security and enhancing conflict resolution.

Objective This is the message she has been trying to promote in Embu as she spends her time talking to different people and encouraging them to come up with their own collective objectives and goals which can be supported by pooling of resources together for the benefit of all. “One way that women have been

Eusebia Mwaniki has decided to manage women’s affairs from the house of representatives. She wants to carry the burden of her community from the position of a women representative. Picture: Grace Igandu.

empowering themselves here is through saving and investing money together via communal banking which is referred to as ‘Ngumbato’ in Kiembu,” she explains. According to Mwaniki, there are many small women’s groups in Embu that are involved in this kind of banking, where individual members are allowed to borrow money for their trade activities and pay it back with interest. Part of her vision is to see more women participate in such innovative types of microfinance and entrepreneurship. However, Mwaniki knows that even in that position there are major challenges that she would face. These include trying to eradicate the nega-

tive vices such as early marriage and Female Genital Mutilation (FGM), which are still practiced in some parts of Embu.

Practices Such negative practices have been a hindrance to the empowerment of women in the county; which is an issue that she discusses occasionally on a local radio stations. She encourages her audience, which consist mainly of the youth to denounce the harmful cultural aspects and to instead concentrate on living responsibly as well as focusing on making right life choices. She also advises young people against wasting their lives away by abusing drugs and illicit brews.

She further admits that she has a soft spot for underprivileged children. Being an orphan herself, she can appreciate the hardships that such children have to go through. This, she says, was her motivation for establishing ‘the Basket of Hope,’ a community based organisation that has the objective of obtaining financial sponsorship for orphans to get access to educational facilities. Since 2009, the organisation has seen eight children get sponsors for their primary education and three others for their secondary school education. “Seeing them get a chance to excel in life gives me such great joy,” Mwaniki exclaims with a broad smile.

Youth ready for the General Elections

…By Duncan Mboyah

he much anticipated General Elections are set to be held late this year or early next year coming after promulgation of the new Constitution. As many people expect peaceful elections devoid of violence, many politicians have already started campaigning even though the official campaign period is yet to be made announced.

Anticipation However, unlike other previous General elections, this particular one is highly anticipated by the youths and women given that the country’s new Constitution that has entrenched affirmative action to ensure that no gender is discriminated and no group — youth, women, disabled — have an opportunity to participate within the political space. First and foremost the Con-

stitution gives parliament powers to enact legislation to promote the representation in parliament of people from the marginalised groups such as the youths, women, persons with disabilities, marginalised communities and ethnic and other minorities. Given their innovativeness, the youth in Kenya have done well in the corporate world, media, sports and business but little has been achieved in politics besides offering security to the male dominated political class. “The youth must replicate their innovativeness to politics by first joining political parties in droves to help them seek positions in order to influence policy,” says Dinah Awuor, Vice Chairperson of Safina Party of Kenya. Awour observes that even though the youth lack money to enable them campaign effectively, they have the ability to package their message well like the United States

President Barack Obama did when he first came to power. Awour notes that for the first time the youth in Kenya and Africa in general, have an opportunity that will catapult them to the next level given that in almost all countries youth make the biggest number of the total population. She urges the Ministry of Immigration to hasten issuance of national identification cards noting that many youth are yet to be registered yet they deserve to participate in the coming elections.

Elderly According to Awour who intends to contest a seat in Nairobi during the coming elections, the youth should not to ignore the elderly politicians adding that youthfulness is a transient stage in life. “It is high time we do politics differently by mobilising voters around issues as opposed to discussing personalities and their age in public,”

observes Awour, 37. She cautions young people to take note of chapter six of the Constitution which stipulates how a public officer ought to behave adding that the casualties are already being forced to step aside. For a very long time, the youths have been left out as serious decisions that affect them are made in the country. “With the new Constitution, for the first time we feel recognised considering there are slots for us as County representatives, at the same time we are free to contest even the Presidency,” notes Dorothy Njagi, a student leader at Moi University’s Nairobi Satellite Campus. Njagi observes that the youth of today are well empowered unlike the past as they have attended several platforms that has prepared them for top leadership positions. There has been a major participation of the youth in the reform agenda.

“During this coming general election we are hopeful and expecting to see more youths take up more positions in the Government and help revolutionise the way things are run in this country since they have a special vision and focus on taking this country in the right direction,” observes Njagi. According to John Odienge, a past Chairman of Moi University Students Organisation (MUSO), the youth stand to benefit during the coming elections but only when they shake off being used to do dirty work for politicians and instead compete for political positions.

Youth “There are various positions to be won in the coming elections and youth must start mobilising people to vote for them,” reiterates Odienge. According to Awour the Presidential election is most likely to be won by a candidate that will speak to the heart of the young people.

Issue Number 25 • April 2012

Party chief, Dinah Awuor shines in a male dominated field …By Carolyne Oyugi

here are many fields that women have not had a chance to shine in, especially in the political field. Even more specifically in party leadership. As we are headed for General Elections on the backdrop of a new Constitution, the issue of gender parity remains key. However, even much before the Constitution of Kenya 2010 was promulgated, there were a few women who had dared tread only where eagles and the brave dare. This is in party leadership. These women include Charity Ngilu (Narc), Martha Karua (Narc Kenya) and Julia Ojiambo (Labour Party). There are other parties, like Kanu, the oldest party in the country that has not dared give women prominent positions in its top leadership. However, despite most parties being gender insensitive, especially when it comes to leadership and management, one party has come out to shine in ensuring that women are not only its members but can also be found in its leadership. This is the Safina Party, that also fielded the first disabled woman as a political candidate.

…By Ben Oroko

hough the Constitution provides that women and men have the right to equal treatment including the right to equal opportunities in political, economic, cultural and social spheres, entrenched socio-cultural stereotypes continue undermining women aspiring for various political positions. According to the national chairperson for the Democratic Party (DP) Women Congress, Lillian Mwaura, conservative culture and religious beliefs are inhibiting women’s participation in political activities, leading to their low representation in the political and socio-economic platform.

Stereotype

Dream Today, Safina has another woman at its top echelons. Dinah Awuor is a young woman who has overcome challenges and achieved what many older politicians are can only dream of. At 37, she is the Vice Chairperson of Safina. Awuor could easily pass for any other ordinary woman until you engage her in conversation regarding the state of the country that she holds dearly. “I have been a community worker since I completed secondary schooling in the early 1990s where from my interactions with the community I came to realise that we have so many problems and yet the solutions are within us if only we can set our priorities right and have a good and working government structure,” Awuor says in her opening remarks as we begin our conversation. Born and bred in Nairobi, Awuor would come out as being streetwise having been raised in Nairobi’s Kamukunji Constituency. “Like thousands of other Kenyans, I was born in Pumwani hospital,” she says with a light touch. To make her mark in politics, Awuor first began with the lowly stage of Bunge la Wananchi (the people’s parliament) eight years ago. She would rise to become its President for two years (2009-2011). During her time she fought for the common persons’ human rights. One thing led to another and she found herself in politics. According to Awuor, politics is not a dirty game as people put it. Instead it is a platform that should be used by citizens to address their issues and push for reforms. “With the situation in our country politics is important. Political power equates to economic empowerment. Those in politics chart the way forward,” she says. It is for this reason that Awuor believed it was only fair that she joined politics to improve the social and economic situation in the country in her small way. However, this young mother of four children admits that politics in Kenya is not a bed of roses.

Hurdles “Being a young woman like me it comes with many hurdles that one must work very hard to jump,” she says. Awuor notes that politics is a field that is filled with male chauvinists who are very ready to judge one for the mere fact that they are women. So just like other women in politics she has to work extra hard compared to her male counterparts so as to be taken seriously and also prove herself. Being a mother, Awuor recognises that she also has to organise her time so as to take care of her family and work at the same time. “My children are always complaining that they miss me. With time I have learnt to spend quality time with them. It is not how long you are with them but what you do with them,” she said. She also has to juggle resources, at times she has good plans but is limited financially. She has, however, overcome these challenges by being

Stereotypes hinder women’s participation in politics

“I have been a community worker since I completed secondary schooling in the early 1990s where from my interactions with the community, I came to realise that we have so many problems and yet the solutions are within us if only we can set our priorities right and have a good and working government structure.” — Dinah Awuor, Vice chairman Safina Party. confident, believing in herself and what she is doing instead of being distracted by things that could bring her down. “If you have a vision and a mission and you work faithfully towards it then the sky is the limit,” she says. Awuor did not end up at Safina Party by chance. It is the history of the party that she bought after going through its manifesto and comparing with that of other parties. “It was the first political party to nominate a blind woman for a parliamentary seat at a time when it was very hard to see women in politics leave alone a disabled one,” she observes. She was also seduced by the party because as it reached out to the people in the grassroots including those in North Eastern Kenya when other parties concentrated on bigger communities and garnered votes from there. Awuor also brings out the fact that Safina Party has hosted strong women in Kenya. Women such as Njeri Kabeberi and Supreme Court Judge Njoki Ndung’u. “The history of my party is not about money but about what you can do in your own small way and make an impact in the community where you are,” notes Awuor. Leadership is not given, instead it is taken. Good leadership can, should and has been achieved. “Women are leaders from the word go. That is why we are the pillars of our families. It pains me when I see women picking tea or cutting flowers and yet when you go to the decision making bodies at the top they are nowhere to be found,” she observes. Awuor believes that politics is not something that the youths and especially young women should shy away from. With what the Constitution has given women, she thinks it will be a shame if they do not come out in large numbers and run for both the appointive and electoral seats. “When I wanted to be the Vice Chair of Safina Party last year, I came out and I was elected during the national delegates’ conference,” Awuor explains. She adds: “We must position ourselves stra-

tegically and be ready to fight for these positions.” Awuor is very optimistic about the devolved government. She believes that this is where the power will be and so women should come out at the top level and mobilise around issues. Civic education should be done thoroughly, voter education is a must and every adult should have the national identification card in order to get voters card and vote. Women should also be voted because of their qualities. Women should not vote with the mind of bora mama but mama bora and be ready to lobby men to vote for women. “We should change tact on how we approach gender issues. The recent gender based violence (GBV) incidences in our country have shown us clearly that men too can be victims and the view that it is only women who are battered is farfetched,” she notes.

Bartered As a human rights defender, when a woman is battered it is painful and Awuor feels the same way when a man is battered. She discourages women from having the attitude that it is the time for men to be on the receiving end. Awuor owes most of her success to her husband. “He has been very supportive and has never frowned at my joining politics and human rights work. I remember when we were arrested for demonstrating against the embezzlement of funds by the Ministry of Education, he was very supportive and visited me all the three days I was in police custody and brought me food,” she said. Awuor has served with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) as the women representative on Strategic Reference Group, a programme that is undertaken by Amkeni Wakenya. She says this country is all we have got and it will take an ordinary person to change it. “The change will not come from foreigners as such even though they never tire of helping us,” she observes. Awuor also believes that an election is just an event that comes and goes and so Kenyans should always look past that.

Speaking to KenyanWoman after addressing the party’s women congress for branches in Nyanza and Western, Mwaura blamed negative cultural stereotypes against women for their poor participation in politics and leadership. Singling out the patriarchal dominance in the traditional African society’s decision making processes, Mwaura called for a change of attitude among various communities to allow both men and women equal opportunities to participate in their community’s decision making processes. “Negative cultural stereotypes have always frustrated women’s efforts to participate in political and leadership positions because they fear a backlash from their conservative communities which treat them as subordinate to men in decision making processes,” observes Mwaura. Mwaura argues that women should not be hindered by their community’s cultural beliefs from actualising their leadership potential. “They should be evaluated on the basis of their leadership abilities just like men instead of being judged on the basis of their gender,” observed Mwaura. She advised that communities be sensitised that one’s leadership ability does not depend on their gender and instead both men and women should be given a fair chance to actualise their leadership abilities without bias. Lamenting that patriarchal dominance in decision making processes continues to frustrate women seeking political positions, Mwaura challenged all communities to consider providing for women a level playing ground to enable them articulate their visions for the electoral areas they wish to represent.

Challenges “I am alive to the fact that our society being patriarchal, women seeking political leadership continue facing enormous challenges in the face of conservative socio-cultural stereotypes as seeking leadership is interpreted as going against cultural norms,” observed Mwaura. She challenged the state and nonstate actors to ensure women aspiring for various political positions as enshrined in the Constitution do so without any hindrance since it is within their democratic and constitutional right. Mwaura urged the Government to pay serious attention to the security of aspiring women politicians since they are often vulnerable to political violence which has always scared them from participating in politics.

Issue Number 25 • April 2012

It is big business, for the beach girls …By Kigondu Ndavano

visit to one of the small markets at the Tropical Village Hotel access road is quite revealing. Today there seems to be a sense of deep concentration as various stall owners quickly but carefully pick various wares from a heap and display them on makeshift shelves and racks of these semi permanent stalls on both side of a beach access road. Dominant among the stall owners are women of all ages whose mastery of arranging the wares is apparent as the colours of various items appear to match fairly well and create an attractive display, quite enticing to the eyes of a prospective buyer.

Stall Gladys Mlanda, a beach trader with stocks amounting to more than KSh80, 000 in her small stall at the Tropical Village Hotel is happy to have ventured into tourism oriented trade some 10 years ago. “When I started, my stock was worth a mere KSh30, 000 and it was not easy because I did not even know the language of the trade — Italian,” explains Mlanda. When she started, Mlanda could only access income of KSh10,000 a month through a merry-go-round programme. Today, things have improved to a point that she can access loans of between KSh20, 000 to KSh150, 000. “Catering for my family and ensuring education for my children has become quite easy although the only challenge is that the tourism industry is seasonal and one has to be strict with savings when business is good and booming,” she explains. Mlanda is among the many women who are to be found along the beach. Many cannot even afford to have a pair of shoe, but this is not a deterrent to the goal they have set for themselves. Barefoot and sometimes carrying nothing suspicious enough to attract the attention of the hawk eyed tourist police officers, Malindi female beach traders are in good business. They are dominating the market in the usually male dominated industry and comfortably earning their foreign exchange. Through the incomes leading to the women’s involvement in more private and commercial financial projects, the women have realised that financial independence can positively contribute towards enjoyment of their rights. These women are positively aggressive and have wide experience in selection of suitable items for sale to tourists. Painstakingly, and at times with puzzling patience they have learned the language of tourism Malindi — Italian.

School Majority of these women have never been to school but speak Italian with ease and baffling fluency when haggling with customers from Italy. Many of these women have made fortunes, yet they deal mainly in the sale of small items normally considered by many to be too low priced and not worth the pain. According to Detta Ogutu, lack of education will never stop them from achieving their objective. They have also enrolled in various financial institutions and merry go round groups. They women have also launched small projects to assist fel-

Women beach traders pose for a picture being taken by an Italian tourist. Women here have perfected the art of speaking foreign languages to enable them deal with their clients easily. Pictures: Kigondu Ndavano

low women mainly widows and the poor who have no source of income. “We have intervened for more than 10 families in the last five years through direct food donations, shelter and school fees mainly for girls who would otherwise have ended up in the commercial sex work,” explains Ogutu. At the various makeshift stalls owned by the women large and heavy wooden carvings of wild animals which are mixed with colourful African kangas, batiks and lessos. Other items include small necklaces, key holders, bangles and earrings among other goods made from simple raw materials such as bones and pieces of cow horns. It is an exhibition of colourful well-finished handmade ornaments.

Comfort After four years in the business, Mwikali Kyalo is happy that she can educate her children and has been experiencing some personal comfort and peace having identified a place to settle down and earn from the tourism industry. Mwikali who is planning to buy a plot and construct her own house within the next three years says: “I used to think that tourism was an industry only for the educated, but with my primary school education, which could be considered quite little, today I earn good income from selling curios to Italian tourists.” Her sentiments are echoed by Fatma Yaa Mbaya Katingili who is illiterate and wishes she could go

back to school to study English and Italian languages. Katingili has been a beach curio trader for the last 20 years and through the years has learned basics of business and the importance of saving. “I have mastered the basics of business and the need to always make savings,” observes Katingili. She adds: “Above all despite my being illiterate I have learned basic Italian that enables me communicate and sell items to Italian tourists.”

Respect Katingili has taken an aggressive approach towards business that has earned her respect among fellow traders including the educated ones. A widow with seven children, Katingili has ensured that all the children attend school without fail. She has also managed to buy a plot and build a permanent house with proceeds from selling curios to tourists. “I am happy I have been able to acquire land and even build a house. At the Coast, after divorce, it is women who are left with the children. It is the women who are exposed to many problems and when they lack basics like rent, some landlords even demand sexual favours once they realise that their tenant is poor. That is what I wanted to avoid once and for all,” Katingili explains. Access roads’ curio markets of Malindi at Casuarina and Silver Sands are perhaps some of the most

“I have mastered the basics of business and the need to always make savings. Above all despite my being illiterate I have learned basic Italian that enables me communicate and sell items to Italian tourists.” — Fatma Yaa Mbaya Katingili

beautiful beaches mainly patronised by Italian, German, British, Belgian and French tourists from across the world every high tourist season which starts in July to February every year. Dominant among the tourists are women and although majority are clad in swimsuits, they are not hesitant to venture into the stalls and pick items. Once in a while amid friendly arguments some excited female tourists will be seen going back to their hotels to bring money to pay for what caught their eye. As hours go by, haggling and arguing mixes freely in several of the stalls lined on both sides of this particular beach access road. The flow of tourists has now improved and it is not strange to see good amounts of money changing hands.

Owner As the Italian tourists approach the entry to the stall, the stall owner goes: “Entra per favore abbiamo le cose unica, sei libera di cercare con calma (Enter please, we have very unique items, you are free to check what you want without disturbance).” Loise Ismail has been a beach trader for 20 years. “Today the sales have been good and apart from earning a turnover of about KSh10, 000, I have also earned some money in foreign currency. I am not sure about the exchange rates, but I will go to Malindi town and change the money into Kenya shillings. I think I have earned at least KSh3, 500 in profits today,” she says. According to Consolata Ogutu, leader of Baharini Women Group participation in the beach trade has

attracted many women into commerce. Today, merry-go-rounds and financial institutions have identified various women beach operators as the best partners to whom they can offer loans. Ogutu says that various lending institutions prefer to deal with female beach traders because they know they have good income to service loans.

Loan “In my group, we have three categories of loan beneficiaries capable of accessing loans of between KSh20, 000 to KSh150, 000 and all are able to pay in the stipulated time because of the lessons they have learnt that they must always save for a rainy day and come up with tangible projects apart from increasing their stocks.” Observes Agutu: “Women who would be suffering as beggars or under bad relationships are today financially independent.” She notes that financial independence remains the first step towards helping women fight and earn their rights.

Issue Number 25 • April 2012

New initiative to capture gaps in the gender agenda …By Joyce Chimbi

omen have been known to toil in fields for most of their lives to produce food and strengthen the economy of African countries that are largely more dependent on agriculture. However, while the women seem to have access to land, ownership remains an issue. When their father or husband dies, then they are no longer welcome to live on the same land which they have tended to for years. The situation gets worse if they do not have older sons to stand in on behalf of their husbands.

Status This analogy was made by Hillary Rodham Clinton, US Secretary of State at Busan, South Korea, during the Fourth and Final Aid Effectiveness Forum that held a special session to discuss the status of the world’s women. An analogy that many agreed created such a strong image of the status of women in Africa and Asia who extract much of their livelihood from natural resources. In Kenya, agriculture is the bedrock of the economy with the sector contributing at least 24 percent of the Gross Domestic Product. Women account for a significant over 80 percent of the labour in this key sector of the economy. “Take coffee for instance, it is Kenya’s third most profitable crop. Often, you find women tilling the land, tending the crop and doing tedious chores such as picking the coffee,” explains Jane Mwangi, a farmer from Kiambu in Central Kenya. She adds: “After dropping the harvests at the nearest coffee factory, very few of them know how much money the crop brings in to the family, men simply take over at that point.” According to Mwangi, men are often more interested in cash crops than food crops which encourages poor management of land because it limits opportunities to give the soil “room to breathe” by rotating various crops to improve the quality of soil and consequently the quality of crops. Often, although it is more women than men who till the land and un-

derstand the nuances of soil management, they are often passed over for training by extension officers who target men simply because they are the holders of the title deeds to the respective pieces of land. Women are, therefore, largely limited to casual labour that is often unrecognised and unremunerated. With many farmers in Kenya being small scale holders, many women tend the land until the crops are harvested. This is because often this land is owned by their husbands or the male head in the family, their contribution not only goes unacknowledged but is also unremunerated. In spite of their fundamental presence in numbers and contribution in form of labour, women in Kenya own only a paltry three percent of the land title deeds.

Contribution Says Clinton: “Many years ago I travelled to Africa and everywhere I went there were women working in the fields, gathering firewood and in market stalls, and so I asked an economic analyst, how do you account for these contributions by women? And he said that they didn’t because it wasn’t in the formal sector.” She adds: “If these women could stop working, even for a day, that would have a huge impact on the economy.” Clinton’s trip to the continent may have been years ago but the situation has not changed in any significant way for many women in the continent and even in Asia. “Women still account for at least 70 percent of the 1.3 billion people living in abject poverty. Women work two thirds of world working hours, produce at

Women farmers busy preparing the farm for planting. Women remain the biggest contributors to agriculture yet they benefit least. Picture: KenyanWoman Correspondent least half of the food yet they only earn a paltry 10 percent of world income and own a negligible one percent of world property,” observes Michelle Bachelet, Executive Director of the UN Women, an entity concerned with gender equality and the empowerment of women. Despite statistics showing that countries that engage women and recognise their contribution achieve greater growth, many African countries are only too willing to offer lip service to the course of gender equality to improve their image at global conferences such as the held in Busan, South Korea. Says Bachelet: “We are saying that this is the time to move from speech line to budget line.” Clinton notes: “I can sense the same frustration in Bachelet’s voice as she made a case for gender equality. The same frustration that I feel. I ask myself, how much longer do we have to make this case?” She further says that this is in spite of the fact that credible sources such as the World Bank and international Monetary Fund (IMF) have shown evidence that the Gross Domestic Product and Per Capital Income could be

higher if women were recognised and integrated into development. From the US Secretary of State’s passionate plea for more commitment to gender equality in relation to better implementation of aid, she made it clear that discriminating against women hurts the economy. Bachelet concurs: “In Asia, statistics show that the economy loses about $89 billion every year because of discriminating against women within the labour force. Sadly, this is a region that is working hard to emerge as one of the leading economies.” These leading champions of gender equality say when women are empowered, when they are given an opportunity to go to school, their children are better fed and they too stand a better chance of accessing a good education. Because a good majority of women in Africa are disenfranchised, millions of their children suffer from malnutrition. In fact, in the recent drought in the Horn of Africa, UN statistics show that of the four million people at the brink of death, two million of them were children. However, this could change. Per-

“Many years ago I travelled to Africa and everywhere I went there were women working in the fields, gathering firewood and in market stalls, and so I asked an economic analyst, how do you account for these contributions by women? And he said that they didn’t because it wasn’t in the formal sector.” — Hillary Clinton, Secretary of State

haps the Busan Forum might take this chance to redeem itself with new and practical solutions towards improving the lives of millions of women. Since what is measured gets noticed, Clinton says: “We are now working on developing data on whose basis gender status can be improved. Today I am pleased to announce a new initiative, the Evidence and Data for Gender Equality (EDGE).” She explains: “EDGE is a new initiative to improve the availability and use of statistics that capture gender gaps in economic activity. It capitalises on the United States’ call to action at the May 2011 OECD Ministerial Session on Gender and Development and builds on recommendations of the UN International Agency and Expert Group on Gender and Statistics.”

Loans Often, Clinton emphasised, loans are given to Small Business Enterprises without assessing how many of these are owned or run by women. “Consequently, women continue to face difficulties in accessing credit. In many countries, a man and a woman can go to the same lender for credit and even have similar collateral but a woman will be treated differently. We can reform credit policies that discriminate and disadvantage women,” she observed. Clinton consistently lauded the Busan Forum saying that it created an opportunity for new initiatives and partnerships critical to advancing the struggle for gender equality and the empowerment of women.

Co-operatives need to open space for women leadership

…By Ben Oroko

here are some careers that have been traditionally associated with women. Yet, there are also others that are treated as odd when women venture into. As this year’s International Women’s Day theme seeks to inspire girls, KenyanWoman wonders aloud about the presence of women in cooperative societies. Yet, while women are strong contributors to cooperative societies, their presence in the leadership representation in this important sector of the economy paints a grim picture. The International Labour Organisation (ILO) Recommendation No.193 (2002) defines a co-operative as an autonomous association of persons united voluntarily to meet their common economic, social and cultural needs and aspirations through a jointly owned and democratically controlled enterprise. Martha Moraa, 83, a veteran smallholder coffee farmer from Riakemuma Village contracted to Nyamonya Farmers Co-operative Society in Giasaiga

Sub-location, Sameta District in the Kisii County, admits that women leadership representation in the coffee primary producer co-operative societies in Gusii land is worrying. Speaking to KenyanWoman in her rural village, Mama Moraa attributes poor representation of women leaders in the local co-operative movement institutions to lack of exposure and orientation of local women on matters involving co-operative leadership and governance activities. Moraa observes that the level of education among local women also determines their grasp of issues affecting them in the co-operative movement. She argues that educated women are most likely to interrogate various co-operative movement policies and translate them into opportunities for their socio-economic and leadership empowerment. “Unlike in the old days when the co-operative movement were viewed as a preserve for men, the world has changed and women who have gone to school have a chance to use their education in transforming the man-

agement and running of the co-operative movement through seeking leadership and management positions,” observes Moraa. However, she laments that conservative socio-cultural stereotypes against women among the Gusii community continue alienating majority of the rural women from taking part in leadership and decision-making processes in the co-operative movement. She regrets that, the community’s conservative patriarchal dominance contributes to poor turnout of women seeking leadership at all levels, particularly in the rural-based agricultural producer primary co-operative societies. These, she says, relegates women to the periphery when it comes to leadership and decision-making processes affecting the institutions.

Stereotypes

“Our community’s conservative stereotype against women seeking leadership continues to frustrate their efforts in aspiring for leadership positions within the local co-operative societies,” observes Moraa.

Moraa notes that lack of land title deeds is one major obstacle facing women seeking leadership in the cooperative movement, since according to the Gusii community customary laws, a woman is not entitled to land ownership. She is only allocated arable land for subsistence farming as the husband controls land ownership and all the proceeds accruing from the cash crops like coffee and tea. With the local primary producer co-operative societies’ by-laws restricting membership and shareholding to members with land ownership rights, Moraa laments that women are naturally locked out. The Gusii Mwalimu Savings and Credit Co-operative (SACCO) Society Limited Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Charles Omwansa concurs that reasons for the persistent gender inequalities between men and women in the co-operative movement leadership are complex and are compounded by socio-cultural issues which cannot be adequately addressed through the legal framework structures in the cooperative movement.

Omwansa observes that, co-operative movement institutions are democratic organisations whose decisions are member-driven and no universal legal framework will address the issue gender inequality between men and women in the sector’s leadership structures, since leaders in the sector are picked through a popular democratic voting process. “It is difficult for any co-operative movement institution to meet gender equity provisions in the co-operative movement leadership structures unless women who are in most cases underrepresented participate in the institutions’ democratic voting processes,” observes Omwansa. He adds: “They must convince members to elect them to whichever leadership position they are seeking in the co-operative movement.” Omwansa regrets that it is not practical to implement the principle of gender equity in the co-operatives leadership instead relevant co-operatives movement institutions should review their legislations and formulate a framework for equitable gender participation in the co-operative movement leadership and governance structures.

Issue Number 25 • April 2012

Investing in girls education, key driver to development

…By Albert Obbuyi

ccess to education for girls is one of the internationally acclaimed approaches for a countries economic growth. The International Declaration of Human Rights asserts that everyone has a right to education and that education in the basic levels shall be free and compulsory. Millennium Development Goal (MDG) three focuses on the achievement of universal primary education in which boys and girls have equal access to education. Globally, out of the 72 million children who are not in school majority are girls. Kenya has made progress since introduction of Free Primary Education in 2003 with over 1.3 million children entering school for the first time. However, over 1.3 million children who are supposed to be in school are still not attending school. With introduction of Free Primary Education, enrolment initially grew by 30 percent for children entering school for the first time. The national primary school enrolment increased from 8.33 million pupils in 2007 to 8.56 million pupils in 2008. In 2008, Primary school enrollment was 8.5 million. In the same year total secondary school enrolment was 1.4 million. In 2008, primary enrolment for girls was 4.2 million while secondary

school enrolment for girls was 635,698. The enrolment rates in primary school are 114 per cent boys compared to 111 per cent girls. Currently the enrolment rate is 63 per cent for boys compared to 57 per cent for girls in secondary schools. For adolescents aged 15-19 years, more boys are enrolled in school than girls. Although enrolment rate is almost the same at primary school, more girls drop out as they advance to secondary school. The transition rate from primary to secondary school increased from 46.4 per cent in 2003 to 59.9 per cent in 2008 and reached 64.1 per cent in 2009. Primary to secondary transition seems to be nearly equal for boys, 88 per cent and girls, 92 per cent. School retention rates are highest

Students at Precious Blood Girls’ School. School retention rates for girls are high at the primary level and drop completely at secondary and tertiary education. Picture: KenyanWoman Correspondent at primary school, lower at secondary school and lowest at tertiary and university schools. In some districts the dropout rates among girls in secondary school between the ages 13-18 years is currently estimated at 30 per cent compared to 25 per cent for boys. Completion rate for girls is lower than that for boys at 85 per cent and

Benefits of education for the girl child • Reduction in infant mortality and morbidity through improvement in children health and nutrition levels due to the fact that the educated girl is equipped with more effective diagnostic and management skills. • Increased economic resources to the household with the fact that a more educated girl is likely to earn more than the uneducated both financially and in terms of cognitive ability to better manage resources. • Influence on household spending with preference in favor of goods consumed by children with nutritional value. • An educated woman is more likely to appreciate the education of girls thereby encouraging the education of girls and breaking the vicious cycle in poor girls’ education. • Decreased maternal mortality with a better health seeking behavior. • Reduction in family size by delaying marriage, lowering fertility rates and the increased use of contraceptives.

girls 75 per cent. For children in school, although the overall completion rate seems to be high, there is still a slight difference with boys’ completion rate at 95 per cent and girls’ completion rates at 93 per cent. The total national dropout rate stands at 6.9 per cent for boys and 6.2 per cent for girls in Secondary school. Women with higher levels of education have fewer children than those with lower or no education at all. About 32 per cent of adolescent girls aged 15–19 years without any education are either pregnant or have already become mothers. For those that have completed primary education, 23 per cent are mothers compared to only 10 per cent of those with secondary education or higher. Challenges to the realisation of right to education for girls The Constitution and other national policy documents affirms the right to education for girls, but several challenges still hinder girls from accessing education.

Widespread poverty with severe consequences to girls in the informal settlements, arid and semi arid areas. Early and unplanned pregnancy — sexual activity begins early resulting in early and unplanned pregnancy. Cultural and traditional practices such as female genital mutilation, early marriages — 13 per cent of girls leaving school do so due to early marriage, HIV/Aids, pregnancy.

Poor sanitation in schools

Consequences of HIV/Aids including orphanhood and child headed households. Education is a key driver of social change and economic growth and its importance to empowering the girl child is well recognised. Providing girls with education not only lifts individuals out of poverty but communities and countries as well. The investment in educating girls may go further than any other spending in global development. The writer is the Executive Director Centre for the Study of Adolescents

Making life worthwhile from solid waste

…By Faith Muiruri

hen Asha Saidi, was selected to undergo a week long training workshop on disposal and solid waste management, she did not know that she was being prepared to start her own business in recycling solid waste. Saidi discovered that the training was more useful to her when she started using waste materials like polythene paper bags to make valuable items like handbags, baskets and caps. Today, she generates good money from the venture. She makes between KSh500 and KSh1, 000 respectively from a weaved handbag or kiondo (basket) depending on the size and pattern used. She also generates between KSh120 and KSh250 from pillows which she makes using leftover pieces from local tailors. In a month, she is able to generate up to KSh15, 000 depending on availability of customers, majority of who are small-scale businesswomen and civil servants. “This job is well paying and you do not need a lot of money or energy to make the items. It also helps in managing the waste products that have become an eyesore in our urban centres,” notes Saidi. After collecting waste products, Saidi uses scissors to trim the polythene papers to small strands.

She later uses a sweater sewing needle to weave the materials and out of this, she manages to make beautiful handbags for women and caps. It is about three years since she acquired the skills and Saidi’s life has changed for the better. She has been making a lot of money from the items she sells from the trade. Saidi who is also the deputy chair lady of Maendeleo ya Wanawake Organisation Kilifi branch says that she will forever remain grateful to the Regional Programme for the Sustainable Management within the Coastal Zone of the Countries of Indian Ocean (ReCoMap), which trained her among 17 other women on how to turn solid waste material into useful items. “The donor just offered us the training and equipped us with the skills but starting the business was an individual’s choice as the business did not require much capital,” she explains. Saidi has curved for herself a market niche and operates in the heart of Kilifi town where she has managed to employ someone to help her in the job. She also hires casuals on a regular basis to collect the waste materials within the town. Although, market remains a big challenge in the trade, the jovial mother of five is able to jungle up with other income generating activities to fend for her family. She has been engaged in other business ventures and runs a salon be-

sides owning a food kiosk which helps to augment her income. Saidi who is also a member of Kilifi Green Town Environment Initiative sells tree seedlings and has been able to generate enough income to educate her five children after the death of her husband five years ago. ReCoMap is a non-governmental organisation operating in the area with support from the European Union and has been supporting many groups engaged in solid waste where Kilifi Green town Environment Initiative is a beneficiary. The solid waste management initiative comes as a relief to the residents who have had to contend with heaps of garbage littered all around them oblivious of the dangers posed by improperly dumped waste which can lead to destruction of the ozone layer and cause diseases such as cancer. Air pollution can also lead to formation of acidic rain which is dangerous to crop life since it fastens the removal of soil fertility from the surface of the ground. Further, solid wastes dumped in drainage channels and gutters lead to blocked sewers which may cause flooding. Some of the waste materials such as polythene bags can be dangerous to the aeration system of the soil hence hindering agriculture. It also leads to the reduction of fertile cultivatable land in form of dumping sites. Waste

Asha Saidi displays some of the items that she makes from waste material. She has been trained on how to recycle waste material to earn a living. Picture: KenyanWoman Correspondent

materials like toxic if consumed by animals can be very dangerous to life and worse still if these wastes are dumped in water bodies, they expose aquatic life to danger. Poor domestic waste management also displays an ugly scenario of the environment. This can affect the tour-

ism industry, which remains a major income earner to the Coastal town. Uncontrolled dumping of solid waste can lead to wastage of land where we find lots of land being used as dumping sites for wastes. These same pieces of land are later on neglected by the inhabitants of the area.

Issue Number 25 • April 2012

‘I refused to be inherited and lost my land and property’ …By Carolyne Oyugi

he issue of women and right to inheritance remains one that sticks out like a sore thumb. Culture and traditions as well as statutory laws have been very discriminative towards women and girls inheriting property. The case has been particularly bad for those women whose husbands have died. Certain cultural conditions such as wife inheritance have seen women being thrown out of homes they had made with their husbands. Christine Owino, 48, was robbed off her land by the in-laws ten years ago. While this displacement should have brought her down, Owino decided that she was strong and would stand tall. She lives by the spirit that “life must go on as long as they have not robbed your life”. Owino’s husband died 12 years ago in a road accident in Mombasa where the couple lived with their four children.

Worried “My husband was a taxi driver. On that fateful day a customer called at 2am to be picked him from Makande. My husband was very drunk and I discouraged him from going but he was a very stubborn man so I let him go,” she narrates. “I was very worried and did not go back to sleep.” Owino’s fears were confirmed at 6am when a neighbour who was coming from work passed by her house to ask for her husband’s whereabouts. The neighbour had seen a car that resembled her husband’s taxi and it was crushed at Makupa Causeway. “My problems did not stop there, when we were preparing for my husband’s funeral, some elders came from the village with my mother and brother-in-law. They demanded to know everything that my husband owned, surprisingly my husband had registered some of our properties under my name and yet they still took them, as simple as that,” she said.

“After my husband’s burial, I was sat down by my in-laws and other village elders and told that if I want to maintain my position in that family then I have to be inherited by my husband’s elder brother,” Owino recalls. They told her that if she wanted to retain her hus- Christine Owino, a widow stands next to one of the boats that she hires out to fishermen. She went into boat business after her late husband’s family disinherited her. Picture: Carolyne Oyugi. band’s inherited land then she had to follow every instruction that she was given. three days when I got a call from my Homa Bay County. implemented well will reduce or end Owino was frustrated and Luckily her first and second born women’s suffering when it comes to disappointed by her in-laws, they neighbour in the village informing me were a strong Christian family and that my house in the village had been got scholarship for college and she has land and property inheritance. Under the current Constitution, she never expected anything like that demolished by my brothers’-in-law,” been left to worry only about the last two. women’s right to own and inherit land from them. Owino is born again and Owino explains. To make ends meet, Owino bought as well as matrimonial property is pro“According to our culture, it is an she was not going to engage in such a boat with the money she had saved tected during and after termination of abomination to demolish someone’s practice. “I have always brought up my chil- house. It was clear to me that they did from her small businesses in Mombasa marriage. Customary law that is inconsistent dren with Christian values and I had not want me there anymore,” she adds and started a boat hiring business at Luanda Rombo Beach in Suba District. with the Constitution is void. talked against wife inheritance and while cleaning her boat ready for hire. “The business was challenging at The in-laws even claimed that they Article 21(3) states that all state there I was the victim then,” she says. “I was also not sure of my brother-in- did not follow the right procedure dur- first but with time I knew more people organs and all public officers have the law’s HIV status and so I was not going ing her traditional marriage and so the and it picked up,” she says. “This busi- duty to address the needs of vulnerness is male dominated and I had not able groups within society, including to involve myself in things that I am not marriage was null and void. lived here long enough to be known so women, older members of society, per“I was married to my husband for sure of.” Owino also believes that if she 13 years and no one questioned the the other boat owners took advantage sons with disabilities, children, youth, was to get involved with another man procedure followed in my marriage and discouraged the fishermen from members of minority or marginalized communities, and members of particuit would be for love and not to protect and then when their son died they were using my boat.” She now owns five boats and all out to question how I got married, ” lar ethnic, religious or cultural commusome land so that her son would have a runs other businesses along boat hir- nities. place to settle. She knows that she had a she says with a tinge of anger. ing. With that she has managed to right to that land because her children buy enough land for her son to build belonged to that family but she was not Owino struggled to make ends his house and she also has a double Article 60(1) sates that Land in going to bend that low. As a result of not following orders meet and although it was difficult, she roomed mud house for herself and the Kenya shall be held, used and managed in a manner that is equitable, efgiven by the clan, she ended up losing managed to take her children through daughters. Owino is just one of the many ficient, productive and sustainable, the land. Two weeks after the burial, she secondary school and decided to go back to the village and rent a house next women who have experienced injustice and in accordance with the following went back to Mombasa. “I had been in Mombasa for only to her husband’s home in Suba District, on issues of land. Many women have principles—(f) elimination of gender been robbed of what rightfully belongs discrimination in law, customs and to them and the perpetrators have used practices related to land and property all sorts of excuses to satisfy their greed in land. “After my husband’s burial, I was sat down by for land and property. Finally, Article 68 Enact legislation Owino went through this before (vi) to protect the dependants of demy in-laws and other village elders and told that the promulgation on the current Con- ceased persons holding interests in any if I want to maintain my position in that family stitution. It was hard for her to fight for land. right because she did not have the With this, one Parliament enacts then I have to be inherited by my husband’s elder her money and did not have the law to sup- legislation, women like Owino will be port her. protected from greedy in-laws who brother.” However, the Constitution has have no respect for marriage, widows — Christine Awino, widow. so many gains for the women and if and orphans.

Struggle

Sustainable

Perceptions hinder women from inheriting land …By Karani Kelvin

and inheritance is something very emotional. In most families, it is the father who sits with clan elders and his sons and distributes the land. The words spoken and the things done on such days depend with culture and traditions. Usually, on such days, women are spectators. They are less likely to be involved in the process for, as the case often is, it is a man’s affair. What business do they have if the land is only going to be given to the sons? In African societies, land belongs to the men. Women can only till it but they know the land is not theirs. This is a historically and culturally conditioned belief, which interestingly, persists to date. Since land and power often times went hand in hand, the man with a lot of land was the most powerful. Land, then, symbolised power. Given that women did not own land, they were less powerful than men. One can trace the power differences between men and

women to land ownership. Since women had no land and were, therefore, less powerful than men, they were the ones to be subjugated. The consequences of this subjugation can be seen in the many discriminatory practices and attitudes in our society.

Colonialism Colonialism introduced common law which in many instances was considered to be more positive than customary law. Of course, one notes the double standards of common law as interpreted and implemented by Europeans but that is a story for another day. At independence, we adopted both common and customary laws to help us chart our way into the new country. Unfortunately, we also adopted the double standards of common law and inherited the discriminatory elements of customary law. The Constitution of Kenya 2010, however, deals a blow on the double standards of the

previous law regime and the discriminatory elements of customary law. By declaring void all discriminatory laws and customs, it sets the stage for equality, equity, dignity and respect for human rights. As such, previously marginalised populations are given the same status as others. Women, of course, remain the biggest beneficiaries in this legal regime. It is like what Chinua Achebe would say: “They have been on their knees while men have been on their feet. It is no wonder then that the sun has always been shining on the men, for it always shines on those who are standing first.” In many ways, the Constitution lifts women to their feet, and when dawn comes, the sun will shine on men and women alike without any discrimination. Although the adoption of our Constitution switched on the lights for marginalised groups ending their prolonged and unjust stay in a legal blackout, more needs to be done for us to fully realise the benefits of the letter and spirit of the Constitution. When it

comes to many issues like land inheritance, perception, not lack of laws is what stops women from enjoying their rights. The belief that land belongs to men and should only be shared out to them is still present. It is the persistence of this belief that even makes women themselves not demand land from their families. The idea is still new to them and one can understand the difficulties of going about it.

Daughters It is also possible that fathers who want to share out their land to their daughters do not know how to go about it as well. How are they to explain to their friends, most of who might still think it unwise to do so, that they are giving their daughters some land? Land inheritance by women is relatively new and unconventional. While we may have laws that guarantee women’s right to inherit land and other properties, it is likely that the perceptions that inform land and property inheritance may continue to pose a problem.

Issue Number 25 • April 2012

More needs to be done in the fight against FGM

…By Karani Kelvin

he day to mark zero tolerance on Female Genital Mutilation is marked on February 6 of every year. However, recent reports in the media indicate that female genital mutilation (FGM) is not going away any time soon. If anything, those behind it have started using medical facilities to continue administering the cut to women. Of course we were all baffled to learn that medical practitioners who fully understand the dangerous implications of the cut are the ones who administer it. It is totally disturbing that people who should speak up against FGM are those behind it.

Mutilation Female genital mutilation also known as female genital cutting or circumcision is the process of deliberately altering of female genital organs for non-medical reasons. The process involves the removal, either total or partial, of external female genitalia or causing injury to them.

According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), FGM causes severe bleeding, problems while urinating, cysts, infections, infertility, complications during child birth as well as a heightened risk of newborn deaths. Major procedures include clitoridectomy which involves partial or total removal of the clitoris; excision which is the partial or total removal of the clitoris as well as the labia minora. It may also involve the removal of the labia majora. Then there is infubilation which is the narrowing of the vaginal opening.

Girls The World Health Organisation estimates that there are over 140 million girls and women in the world who are living with the consequence of FGM. It also estimates that 92 million girls over the age of 10 have undergone FGM in Africa. FGM is practiced either for cultural or religious reasons across the world. It is considered to be a rite of passage for women in some communities just as male circumcision is for men. In communities where FGM is practiced,

it is done so chiefly to reduce a woman’s libido. Other reasons include the belief that FGM makes women more feminine or modest, the need to conform and be like others (social pressure) and religious reasons. Although female genital mutilation has been declared a violation against the human rights or girls and women, it was not until last year that a bill that sought to specifically address it in Kenya was passed in Parliament.

Legislation In her article ”FGM: Kenya acts against unkindest cut” (September 8, 2011) in The Guardian, Sarah Boseley quotes nominated MP Sophia Abdi Noor as having said, “I have fought for 18 years to achieve this legislation. Men got their independence in 1963, but today women have achieved independence from the cruel hands of society.” Boseley also quotes Unicef ’s child protection specialist Zeinab Ahmed as having said, “It is a great day for the girl child of Kenya. FGM is a serious violation of the rights of the child and of women”.

It is, therefore, unfortunate that even with concerted efforts to end “the unkindest cut”, the practice is still going on. Governments as well as non-governmental organisations have directed a lot of resources to curb FGM but people are still finding ways of doing it. Although the efforts directed at saving girls and women from FGM have saved some of them, much more needs to be done to save the many girls and women who endure it by the day.

Advocacy Governments and civil society organisations must double their educational programmes in areas where FGM is practiced. While having laws is a good step in the right direction, laws cannot be an end in and of themselves. It is only through education that the critical abilities of societies can be sharpened, making them critical of their cultural and religious practices. Societies can the rid themselves of practices that are harmful to its members and retain those which are not.

Jumping over the hurdles of culture into leadership …By Joyce Joan Wangui

ary Kahingo is just a name to an ordinary Kenyan, but in Oloitoktok in Kajiado County, her name speaks volumes. Kahingo is the first woman chief in the area, and the only one in the whole of the County. Her position as a location chief was, however, received with mixed reaction by the community that is yet to embrace women’s leadership. To women, she is seen as their messiah, one sent to help those appearing before her have a friendlier face as she is expected to be instrumental in solving many problems that afflict them.

Women Kahingo is best placed in handling challenges that engulf women including domestic violence, early pregnancies and marriages as well as cultural practices surrounding the outlawed Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) and early school drop outs. However, her appointment as an administrator did not come on a silver platter. According to Lillian Mogiti, a project officer at Abantu, a local nongovernmental organisation, men were hesitant to accept her initially. They argued that she was too ‘vocal’ and this would be a detriment to a woman’s moral values. Kahingo had to convince her family, especially her husband to support her so that she could gain the support of the community. In this community, a woman showing any signs of leadership is perceived with doubt. It is a daunting task to convince the entire community to rally behind her.

Endorsement “Once the community endorses you, even the District Commissioner has no choice but to approve,” notes Mogiti who says that the community has an upper hand in such matters. For a woman to be elevated in any leadership mantle, she has to be married. The community regards married woman with more respect as compared to single women. The community is of the view that if a woman can handle her family, then she can handle the entire community. Women’s leadership in the area is

not all milk and honey. For starters, their husbands have to approve all their activities. They meddle in all their affairs and this makes it difficult for them to perform certain tasks. For instance, a woman has to seek approval from her husband before attending any workshop and sometimes the answer could be no. Kahingo has vowed to transform the view of gender equality in ways that will change the way of doing things in the entire county. To start with, she has been holding several capacity building workshops that encourage women to embrace leadership by sending their applications when advertisements come out. She has taken it upon herself to empower women to know their rights and say no to retrogressive cultures that bar them from forging ahead. She also trains men on the importance of involving women. “The benefit of the workshops is that the men trained end up encouraging their wives to enter into leadership,” says Mogiti. Besides Kahingo who benefited from Abantu’s civic education training sessions, Judy Komite is another beneficiary. Komite is the current treasurer of the Constituency Development Fund (CDF) bursary in Oloitoktok. In this area, such a responsibility could easily have been handled by a man, but women are proving that they too have what it takes to handle crucial jobs. The level of illiteracy among women in Oloitoktok is estimated to be 40 percent. This high percentage is attributed to several factors including a high school drop-out among girls. In this region, when a girl reaches Standard Six, she knows that she is ready for marriage, so the prospects of furthering her education are almost nil.

Maasai women at an empowerment meeting. Women’s leadership among the Maasai is not milk and honey women must ask their husband’s permission before attending a workshop. Inset: Mary Kahingo, a chief in the Oloitoktok area of Kajioda County Picture: KenyanWoman Correspondent.

and Kiswahili — that are strange to them, simple mathematical calculations to help them in their small businesses as well as other life skills. Lack of basic education breeds early marriages, hence early childbirth. The flip side of this is a vicious cycle of cultural practices that block women’s development. Abantu has initiated adult education in the area by training several trainers who then train the women. Here, they learn languages — English

“Women’s leadership in the area is not all milk and honey. For starters, their husbands have to approve all their activities. They meddle in all their affairs and this makes it difficult for them to perform certain tasks.” — Lillian Mogiti

Education “For these women to vie for elective seats, they need to be properly educated. We encourage school drop outs to continue with education and get certificates,” explains Mogiti. Come April next year, adult education for women will be conducted at Ikisongo Secondary School (during school holidays). Several secondary school teachers have volunteered to offer education to vulnerable women. Abantu has also trained field officers to go around all schools in the area, in a bid to empower the girlchild on stages of puberty and early pregnancy among others. It is unfortunate that parents do not talk to their children on issues that touch on sexuality in this community as it is viewed taboo.

Women do not prepare their daughters for puberty; they discover it on their own. Hence the field officers are quite resourceful in a child’s rites of passage. Ironically, parents are quick to administer female circumcision to their daughters yet fail to address pertinent issues.

Awareness Recently, a woman’s lobby group in the area created Enyito, a Maasai word loosely translated asTuamke in Swahili (let’s wake up). This movement is instrumental in fighting for justice among girls in the area. Though still gaining momentum, the group is optimistic that many girls will benefit from its goals. It was formed on the grounds that many girls were suffering defilement and had no one to talk to. Besides advocating for rights, the group also advices women how to access bank loans, seek education as well as diversify their economic activities. Women are taught to shift from over reliance on pastoralism to agriculture.

Issue Number 25 • April 2012

Violence against women in Gusii worrying …By Ben Oroko

hough the action plan from the 1995 Fourth World Conference in Beijing recognised the elimination of GenderBased Violence as central to gender equality and women’s empowerment, the issue remains a major problem in the country. United Nations Education, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) defines gender based violence as any act of violence that results in or is likely to result in physical, sexual or psychological harm or suffering to women, including threats of such acts, coercion or arbitrary deprivations of liberty, whether accruing in public or private life. Violence against women and girls remains a serious problem across the world, with at least one out of every three women around the world being beaten, coerced into sex or otherwise abused in her lifetime. Statistics indicate that, women aged between 15 and 44 have died or been disabled through violence, with ten among the selected risk factors facing women in this age group being rape and domestic violence. It is estimated that, death and disability from violence affecting women between 15 and 44 years, is the same as that resulting from cancer. However, the toll on women’s health as a result of GBV surpasses that of traffic accidents and malaria combined.

Linkage Studies from various countries have revealed an increasing linkage between violence against women and HIV/Aids, with women who have experienced violence being at higher risk of HIV infections. According to Nyarinda Agura, a women’s empowerment advocate based in Kisii violence against women and girls has serious medical, social, economic and psychological consequences. “Violence can have long-term negative effects on the life of a girl and can affect relationships and decision mak-

ing on sexuality and other reproductive health issues,” observes Agura. She notes that violence against women compromises their reproductive health and pregnancy outcomes, including unwanted pregnancies, unsafe abortion and maternal mortality among others. “Violence exposes girls and women to the risks of HIV infections through rape and fear of negotiating for condom use during sexual intercourse,” observes Agura. She adds: “Improving education access to girls is a major step to reducing cases of gender based violence in this country.” She observes: “Initiating gender sensitive educational programmes will facilitate sensitisation of young men to appreciate and respect women’s rights.”

Health Agura, herself, a trained clinical officer, challenges the Government to fast-track the resolutions of the 1995 Beijing Conference, where governments promised to integrate mental health services into primary health care systems. The Government should also train primary health care workers to recognise and care for girls and women who have experienced any form of gender based violence. She appeals to the Government to allocate adequate funds and resources for emergency contraception which is a key component of post-rape care. “The Government should consider expanding and making available health facilities offering on-site screening and care for abused women, to ensure women in the rural areas of the country conveniently access the services,” advises Agura. However, according to Lydiah Muriuki Eastern Nyanza Regional Commissioner, there is an increase of cases of domestic violence against women in Gucha South District in the Kisii County. Muriuki expresses fear that if the local community does not collaborate with the Government in finding a lasting solution to the problem, the future

security of women and children will be threatened. Addressing members of the local provincial administration in Kisii town in one of the performance review meetings, Muriuki singled out Gucha South District as the most affected area in the region and challenged members of the public from the area to give suggestions to the law enforcement machinery on how to reverse the situation which was endangering lives of innocent women and children. “I am challenging community members from Gucha South to conduct thorough soul searching and come up with the causes of the rampant cases of domestic violence against women, to facilitate the Government to partner with the local community in finding a lasting solution to the problem and assure women and children of their security and safety at household levels,” reiterates Muriuki.

Action She challenged women from the affected communities to take precautionary measures whenever they sense their spouses were contemplating committing acts of domestic violence, reminding them to report such incidents to the law enforcement machinery for immediate action. Muriuki warned women in the region against suffering in silence when they encountered domestic violence at household levels as such trend gave their perpetrators leeway to continue engaging in the vice which threatens the security of women and children. “Men should stop hiding behind the culture of wife beating as a disciplinary action against their wives, as this is an outdated culture which contributes to violence against women, depriving them of their human rights,” noted Muriuki. “I am warning men from this community to consider using peaceful structures in addressing household disputes and conflicts, instead of beating their wives under the pretext of disciplining them as such actions amounted to violence against women,” she noted.

A man goes for his wife and child with a rungu. It has been noted that violence in the family in Gusii is very high and worrying the government administration. Inset: Nyarinda Agura, a women’s empowerment advocate based in Kisii —Pictures: KenyanWoman Correspondent and Ben Oroko.

However, she decried increasing cases of child defilement in the region, warning chiefs and their assistants against compromising justice to the detriment of the affected children. She observed that instead the local provincial administrators should ensure justice for the children prevails. She regretted that many cases of defilement did not reach the courts as majority of the parents lacked knowledge on the procedures to follow when such vices are committed on their children. “Instead they are either threatened by

the perpetrators to either accept out of court settlements or risk losing the cases in court,” Muriuki observed. The administrator challenges members of the public to volunteer information to the relevant Government offices for action against any local provincial administrator who circumvents the law to protect perpetrators of child defilement in their respective areas of jurisdiction.

Women worst affected by gender based violence …By Henry Kahara

n February 26, Mercy Mteithia, 27, was stabbed to death by a man who is suspected to have wanted to be in relationship with her. According to Beatrice Ngare, Mteithia’s mother, she had spent the whole day with her daughter carrying on with their day to day activities. “I sell githeri (meal of maize mixed with beans) here with my daughter since the time she left high school in 2005, and this young man is a supermarket attendant,” she says pointing to the supermarket which is opposite their tent, where the suspect James Mulu is employed.

House Recalling the day with tears Ngare says that her daughter had gone back in the house when she (mother) was called by the neighbours to go and check what was happening in her house. “I was just sitting here when my neighbours came and told me that my daughter is screaming in the house,” she says. The man had locked himself with the girl inside the house. According to Ngare if had the two not locked the door maybe her daughter could have been saved.

Mteithia who had severe knife stabs all over her body is said to have struggled with the man in a bid to set herself free. “It is as if that man wanted to rape her because her apron was torn and some of her clothes were removed,” says Winfred Mwakazi, the deceased’s sister.

Relationship Mwakazi dismisses the allegations that her sister was in a relationship with the man. “I don’t agree with the fact that my sister was in a relationship with this man because my sister is 27 while this man is 20 may be he wanted her but my sister declined the offer,” she suggests. According to Ngare, Mteithia is one of the most obedient child and rarely got into trouble. “I have never heard or been told that she has abused anybody. She has been very obedient and I even leave her to manage this business because I know she is a responsible girl,” Ngare observes. According to the report from Care Provider International Hospital where Mteithia was rushed before she succumbed to death, she bore fatal injuries. “She was unconscious when she was brought here. We tried to examine her but unfortunately she died before we could attend her,” explains Lameck Nyimatha, the hospital’s

nursing Officer. According to the supermarket proprietor who declined to reveal his name, Mulu was a good person and he had never thought of him capable of murder. “Actually he was a very good man even at the time of committing the crime my wife had sent him outside to look for change,” he says adding that “we trusted him. I don’t know how he deviated and went to the girl’s place to commit the heinous act.” Mulu is now in remand waiting to face the law while the deceased family is waiting for justice.

murdered by their husbands. Yet many cases of violence against women go unreported. According to Saida Ali, Executive Director Coalition of Violence Against Women (COVAW), some family members don’t see the importance of reporting such cases. “These kind of cases are rampant in slum areas like Majengo and Shauri Moyo but they go unreported,” notes Ali. Kenya is said to have taken a few steps in addressing Gender Based Violence and women’s human rights. The Sexual Offences Act is one legislation that seeks to addresses cases of sexual abuse that include rape.

Men

Bill

Cases of gender based violence are many. Recently we have experienced men being battered by their wives. This has been said to be attributed to the harsh economic time being experienced not only in the country but globally. Men are being blamed for failing to provide for their families and only drowning their sorrows in beer. However, even though violence against men has only in recent times come into the limelight, women remain most vulnerable to domestic violence compared to their male counterparts. Other than physically and emotional harm, we have witnessed women being

According to Ali, the Government is to blame for not passing the Family Protection Bill. She argues that had it been enacted as law, the statistics would be lower. “Parliamentarians have not given time to the bill and I think it is has stayed longest. The Bill stipulates what is supposed to be done whenever law is violated,” she explains. According to domestic violence fact sheet, one in every four women will experience domestic violence in her lifetime. Worldwide an estimated 1.3 million women are victims of physical assault by an intimate partner each year.

Issue Number 25 • April 2012

If women are the future, why are they missing at Davos? I …By a Correspondent

t is the biggest and most powerful meeting of the world which discuss the future and where we are headed. Yet this is a meeting that is heavily dependent on men. Despite a quota system to boost female participation, gender imbalance is still heavily skewed towards men. If you attended the opening address by Angela Merkel or the private dinner in which Nobel laureate Leymah Gbowee held a group of financiers in thrall with her life story, you might think that fabulous, powerful women dominate Davos. But the fact is, Davos has a woman problem.

Innovators The first day, which included honours for the Japanese violinist Midori and a screening of the biopic of Aung San Suu Kyi, may have ended with a party to “honour women innovators” such as the web entrepreneur Arianna Huffington. Then the guests departed into the snowy darkness of Davos to the rousing sounds of the 1980s disco classic Ladies’ Night. And the biggest day of this year’s World Economic Forum (WEF) could have included a main room event discussing “women as the way forward”. However, while the impact of women this year may be bigger than ever, organisers keen to encourage and then trumpet their success cannot hide the fact that their numbers are still small. Despite a new quota system demanding that the largest members send one woman for every four men, just 17 per cent of the 2,500 delegates are female. Despite a push to encourage more women on to panels to discuss the issues of the day, just 20 per cent of those invited to do so are women. The majority of panels, especially on key economic topics, are still dominated by (white) men.

Women Although the days are long gone when one female delegate was asked to leave an event because security assumed she must be a spouse without the required permit, the majority of the women in Davos are not there as participants. Only newcomers to Davos seem to consider this fact remarkable, with the odd feminist exception such as Helen Clark. The former prime minister of New Zealand turned administrator of the United Nations Development Programme called the female participation rate “pathetic”. The leader who appointed so many senior women to her cabinet that Benetton ran an airport advertising campaign welcoming visitors to the “women’s republic of New Zealand” called for organisers to commit to The Millennium Development Goal of 30 per cent female participation by 2015. “Or why not next year? They should just go and look for the women. In one stroke, participation would go up.” There is little support for such intervention among organisers, who argue that Davos merely reflects a world in which women lead just three per cent of the biggest companies in the US and UK and make up 17 percent of its parliaments. Saadia Zahidi, the WEF’s head of constituents who is spearheading the gender programme, calls this the “external

The Chancellor of Germany Angela Merkel is the only female face among the Presidents who meet at the World Economic Forum in Davos. Other than that, there are very few women who speaking within the meeting, making it almost a total male affair. —Picture: Internet. glass ceiling” about which an annual meeting of top people can do nothing. Roger Carr, the chairman of Centrica who is leading efforts to get more women appointed to British boards, agrees. “Davos is a special place populated by the most senior decision makers. The fact is that the number of women in that position is quite small. Davos is just the symptom of something that happened way, way back.” Centrica sends just two delegates and both the chief executive and chairman happen to be men. With the cost of the meeting astronomical — delegates have to pay for five nights’ stay as a minimum — not to mention the annual membership fees of about £100,000 for the strategic partners subject to the quota, many companies are happy to talk the talk while hoping that others do the walking.

Population So why even bother to set a quota? Why not simply accept the status quo at an event which sums up a world governed by just one per cent of its population? Is the whole gender parity programme part of a cynical public relations exercise to encourage a belief that the most powerful people in the world care about half the world’s population? There are two answers to this from within Davos. The first, that it is not a numbers exercise but good business,

is summed up by Carr: “This is nothing to do with PR. It’s just good business. I’ve sat on single gender boards and mixed ones and the latter improves the dynamics of the meetings and ultimately the decision making itself.” This view is echoed by WEF founder Klaus Schwab, who says: “A world where women make up less than 20 per cent of the global decision makers is a world that is missing a huge opportunity for growth and ignoring an untapped reservoir of potential.” The more popular sessions dealing with gender tended to be those discussing this “diversity dividend” or whether “decision making is better when there’s a diverse set of people making the decisions”.

Revolution This idea plays into one theme of this year’s Davos: that as the current economic and political crisis was made by men, the inclusion of more women can only help matters. Desmond Tutu, the former archbishop of Cape Town, brought a cheer to proceedings when he said: “What we need is a revolution led by women. I think women ought to be saying to us men: ‘You have made a mess, just get out and let us in’.” Even Christine Lagarde said before becoming the head of the IMF, an institution criticised for its own role in the financial crisis, that the world might be a different place if there had

Davos merely reflects a world in which women lead just three per cent of the biggest companies in the US and UK and make up 17 percent of its parliaments.

been a bank called “Lehman Sisters”. However, there is also a wider political agenda which fits into the idea that diversity will help close the gap between the one per cent and the 99 per cent they govern. The charismatic chief operating officer of Facebook, Sheryl Sandberg, captured this in introducing Gbowee when she said: “If the central moral imperative of the 19th Century was slavery and of the 20th, totalitarianism, the central moral imperative of our time is the equality of girls and women around the world.” There is evidence that investing in girls and women in developing countries does have a dramatic impact on the economy. Cherie Blair, who set up a foundation for women, says the issue is the most important one on the Davos agenda: “I don’t think the people who go to Davos deny that this is a major issue … They read the same reports about the value of investing in women in terms of education and employment as I do.” Various studies suggest greater involvement by the poorest and the wealthiest women could help the global economy. The World Food Programme has found that girls and women reinvest 90 per cent of each dollar in their families by buying food, books and medicine, for example. For men, that figure is more like 30 per cent to 40 per cent.

Diversity So, if participation at the most senior levels is to be encouraged, what is being done about it? A private breakfast of the forum’s female leaders and gender parity board discussed a document due to be published in March which will set out best practices to achieve greater diversity. These include a focus on measurement and audit, mentoring and sponsorship

and a change to the way home and work life is shared. None of these are mandatory although an appearance by Viviane Reding, who is considering the introduction of quotas across the eurozone, is keenly anticipated. Advocates of change insist that most effort should be directed at the middle management level, the point at which most women fall by the wayside, victims of either familyunfriendly policies or the failure to network for the top jobs. The forum’s effort to help involves an outfit called the Young Global Leaders, a network of about 1,000 people who are picked for greatness before the age of 40. Of these, 42 per cent of these are women, while the newly formed Global Shapers of over-achievers under 30 are split 50-50. The big question is, how many of these graduate do actually run companies or countries? WEF doesn’t give these figures.

Culture However, its efforts to become more inclusive does seem to have led to a marked cultural shift. Anuradha Vittachi, who has been attending Davos for years as founder of the OneWorld development group, says: “The panel used to look at the brown female wearing a sari with her hand up and point to someone else in the audience to ask a question.” That is no longer the case, she acknowledges. Blair says: “If the world doesn’t start giving a proper platform for women, then it will fall flat on its face.” Clark agrees. Asked whether leaders are paying lip service to gender equality as they battle to put out the global economic fires, she says: “Maybe, but we can’t let them off the hook. We just have to keep on keeping on.”

Issue Number 23 • November 2011

Selline Korir: Ambassador of peace

She stands her ground to bring calm among warring communities

…By Kennedy Kibet er peace efforts in the region will never pass unnoticed. When warring communities in West Pokot, Mt Elgon and Uasin Gishu were on the verge of unleashing terror at each other, she stood her ground in ensuring that amicable solution was arrived at. Her relentless, irresistible determination has ensured that peace has been restored among communities. Although she has not taken credit, it has made her not only to stand out as a selfless woman but as one with impeccable credentials. Her dreams to be an ambassador for the voiceless developed in her when she was still of tender age. As a young girl, Selline Korir always wanted to assist people especially women and children from all walks of life in making their plight known to the world. She first wanted to be a nun, as to her they looked like angles and had a heart of protecting the vulnerable. She later developed aspirations of wanting to be a radio personality since it was the only way she was going to influence millions of lives.

Law However, after witnessing a man battering his wife, who was later found dead in questionable circumstances, the urge of wanting to become a lawyer to defend the meek developed in her. However, as fate would have it, she ended up studying Economics at the university. Standing close to six feet tall and with a slender frame, one would never guess that she once stood against the fierce West Pokot MP Francis Lotodo, who was accorded a royalty status by his people. At that time, the Pokot and the Marakwet were embroiled in a bitter land feud and cattle rustling activities that were claiming lives daily. According to Korir, the satisfying moment came when she witnessed former antagonists shake hands in reconciliation. She then ventured into Lotodo’s turf to preach peace, something that nobody would dare for fear of repercussion. “I remember one episode when I confronted Lotodo and told him to his face that they were as bad as their perceived enemies since they were encouraging people to fight each other,” she says. In advocating for peace, Korir has stared at death in the face more times than she can recall. This responsibility has seen her comfort families that have lost loved ones in ethnic clashes. She has listened to the horror stories of mothers who have killed their children and later committed suicide just to escape the sorrow and senseless trail of death left behind by warring communities. Despite all these, Korir still soldiers on in her quest for fostering peace which has proved to be very elusive to communities especially for those living in West Pokot County. In 2005, what began like a land dispute es-

calated under the influence of outside political forces into a full scale war leaving hundreds dead and many more displaced. She found herself intervening towards this by initiating mechanism that brought together all stakeholders to address the crisis. “When conflict began to build up, many young men who did not join the Sabaot land Defence Force (SLDF) fled leaving their wives to tend their farms,” says Korir. She adds: “There were reports of rape perpetuated against women by both the SLDF militia and security forces deployed by the Government.’’

Peace In December 2008, she managed to register over 600 women who had lost their husbands in the conflict under the umbrella of Rural Women Peace Link a network of grassroots women’s organisation working for peace in western Kenya region which she co-founded. “We listened to their stories of torture and documented all cases of rape. We interacted with the child-based families in which both parents had been lost in the conflict and with boys and girls forced into militia. We supported widowers whose wives had been killed,’’ she observes. When conflict broke out in Mt Elgon, the Government declared it a closed zone, prohibiting any organisation from entering the district. It was in the face of this, Korir organised a group dubbed ‘The multi-sectoral forum of security of women and children in Mt Elgon’ that brought together all service providers from the region and the neighbouring districts. “All the actors from the Ministry of Health to relief providers committed themselves to the plan of remedying the situation there. I personally transported the media to cover the situation of women and children there, and for the first time, stories about Mt Elgon ran across all major media for a full month,’’ she explains. As if that was not enough, when the country was on a brink sliding into a civil war following the disputed election of 2007, and many had locked themselves in the houses. However, Korir was determined to learn what was going on outside and soon discovered that friends had been forced to take refuge in schools, churches, and makeshift camps.

Seline Korir, is the ambassador of peace who has worked at reuniting warring communities and protecting the vulnerable. Picture: Kennedy Kibet

She made it her mission to reduce the suffering by distributing phone cards so refugees could call loved ones. She rallied local leaders to tend to the killed, wounded, and homeless. She organised the women who had been mistreated into a social force, helping to restore their dignity and confidence while facilitating talks between women from warring factions. However, and despite all this Korir who is the programme development officer for the USAID office of Transitional Initiatives (OTI) Kenya, considers her actions during the conflict as being normal.

Action “The intervention I made during the postelection violence was not meant for recognition,” she says. “It was just part of the action I took at that time as a service to humanity.” She recalls: “I rallied young people, politicians, government officials, media and civil society organisations so I could keep information on events flowing, and connect the information with those who could save lives,” she says. Her contacts from the Rural Women Peace Link, both inside the camps and outside, passed messages back and forth through her, providing tips on people, including the elderly, trapped inside houses in villages stricken by the violence.

“There were many agencies providing food and dealing with the bigger picture, but they missed the issues that were key to target groups like women and girls. We gave the victims space to cry, to tell their stories and relieve trauma. We organised all these groups in small corners within the camps at our own risk.” — Selline Korir, women’s leader in Uasin Gishu County

“I networked with the security teams that I knew to go to locations and save the situation,” says Korir. “There were a lot of bodies that had not been buried and we networked to ensure the families had their dead buried with our support.” She recalls one incident in which a young boy from a refugee camp had drowned in a cattle dip. “I personally saw to it that the funeral and burial were successful,” she says. This was the defining moment for his organisation. Word started spreading of such selfless actions, which in turn helped Korir and her network to win the confidence of the women and children trapped in the camps. “There were many agencies providing food and dealing with the bigger picture, but they missed the issues that were key to target groups like women and girls,” Korir explains. “We gave the victims space to cry, to tell their stories and relieve trauma. We organised all these groups in small corners within the camps at our own risk.”

Abused The women and girls told of being misused sexually abused by men in the camps, including security personnel. Young women who had just delivered babies were not being well served and single mothers had no one to stand in line for them at the food distribution points. Through a radio programme organised by Korir, people donated necessities to families in the camps. When the situation normalised somewhat, the women formed groups and met weekly to think about life after the camps, including making peace between the rival Kikuyu and Kalenjin tribes. “My network became the bridge to take information back and forth from the communities to the camps,” Korir said. “This went on until the Kikuyu women finally wished to meet the Kalenjin women they had vowed they would never meet.”

Executive Director: Rosemary Okello Editorial Director: Arthur Okwemba Managing Editor: Jane Godia

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

Sub-Editors:

Duncan Mboyah and Joyce Chimbi

Contributors:

Henry Kahara, Ben Oroko, George Omonso, Bob Ombati, Hussein Dido, Betty Nehondo, Benson Mwanga, Grace Igandu, Carolyne Oyugi, Kigondu Ndavano, Albert Obbuyi, Faith Muiruri, Karani Kelvin, Joyce Joan Wangui and Kennedy Kibet.

Design & layout: Noel Lumbama (Noel Creative Media Ltd)

This paper is produced with support from HIVOS