women leadership and governance in meru and nyeri counties

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CENTRE FOR RIGHTS EDUCATION AND AWARENESS | CREAW

RAPID ASSESSMENT: Women Leadership and Governance in Meru and

Nyeri counties

Rapid Assessment Report:

Women Leadership and Governance in Meru and Nyeri Counties.

Final Report

May 2016

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

This assessment was conducted by Centre for Rights, Education and Awareness

(CREAW) with the generous support from Forum Syd.

Cover Photo: WordCloud Representation of challenges women face in leadership – Meru County

TABLE OF CONTENTS

List of Figures

Acronyms and Abbreviations

Executive Summary

1. Introduction ................................................................................................................ 1

1.1. Problem ............................................................................................................ 3

1.2. Contextual Background .................................................................................... 3

1.3. Methodology .................................................................................................... 5

1.4. General Demographics ..................................................................................... 5

2. Political and non-political decision-making spaces ................................................. 6

3. Meru County Assessment Report ........................................................................... 11

3.1. Introduction .................................................................................................... 11

3.2. Demographics ................................................................................................. 12

3.3. Access to Decision-making spaces ................................................................. 13

3.3.1. Gender representation in decision-making spaces ................................... 16

3.3.2. Gender Representation in County Administration .................................. 17

3.4. Lens on decision-making spaces .................................................................... 17

3.5. Challenges to women participation in leadership ........................................... 18

4. Nyeri County Assessment Report ........................................................................... 23

4.1. Introduction ......................................................................................................... 23

4.2. Demographics ...................................................................................................... 24

4.3. Access to decision-making Spaces ...................................................................... 25

4.3.1. Gender representation in decision-making spaces ................................... 27

4.3.2. Gender representation in county administration ...................................... 28

4.4. Lens on Decision-making spaces ................................................................... 29

4.5. Challenges to women participation in leadership ........................................... 30

5. Findings ..................................................................................................................... 36

6. Conclusions and Recommendations ....................................................................... 37

References

Annex 1: Terms of Reference

LIST OF FIGURES

Meru County

1.1 Gender Disaggregated Data for All Respondents in Assessment 6

1.2 List of leadership bodies identified with gender disaggregation 10

3.1 Map of Meru County 11

3.2 Gender Disaggregated Data for Meru Respondents 12

3.3 Number of Positions Listed for Women Leadership 13

3.4 Perception on Equal Access to Leadership Positions 14

3.5 Perception on Women Representation in Leadership 15

3.6 Ranking of Women Participation Spaces 16

3.7 Chances for Women Aspirants in the 2017 elections 17

3.8 Top Challenges to Women Leadership – Female Responses 18

3.9 Top Challenges to Women Leadership – Male Responses 19

3.10 Most mentioned Challenges to Women Leadership (by gender) 20

3.11 Strengthening women Participation in Leadership 22

Nyeri County

4.1 Map of Nyeri County 23

4.2 Gender Disaggregated Data for Nyeri Respondents 24

4.3 Number of Positions Listed for Women Leadership 25

4.4 Perception on Equal Access to Leadership Positions 26

4.5 Perception on Women Representation in Leadership 27

4.6 Ranking of Women Participation Spaces 29

4.7 Chances for Women Aspirants in the 2017 elections 29

4.8 Top Challenges to Women Leadership – Female Responses 29

4.9 Top Challenges to Women Leadership – Male Responses 31

4.10 Most mentioned Challenges to Women Leadership (by gender) 32

4.11 Strengthening women Participation in Leadership 34

ACRONYMS

CA County Assembly

CDF Constituency Development Fund

CEC County Executive Committee

CEDAW Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination Against Women

CEO Chief Executive Officer

CIDP County Integrated Development Plan

CoK Constitution of Kenya

CPSB County Public Service Board

CREAW Center for Rights Education and Awareness

FIDA Federation of Women Lawyers

MCA Member of the County Assembly

MP Member of Parliament

NGEC National Gender & Equality Commission

NLC National Land Commission

SACCO Savings and Credit Co-operative

VSO Voluntary Service Overseas

Gender equality is not only fundamental right but it is increasingly becoming aware that

alienation of any particular gender suppresses about half of the global population and isolates

them from participating in, and benefitting from development. Gender equality has therefore

been realized to be a necessary precursor towards sustainable development. The highly

limited representation of women’s voices in critical decision making spaces in Kenya is

reflected in the slow progress towards women’s involvement in politics and leadership. With

women making up just over 50% of the Kenyan population, it is a stark reminder of how far

gender equality in representation is, with the figures that only 18% of the current National

Assembly are elected women, and no single woman was elected governor or senator in the

last (2013) elections.

This is in contrast to the Constitution of Kenya 2010 (CoK) which recognizes women, among

special groups deserving of constitutional protection, and provides for them in this regard

through Article 27, which obligates the government to develop policies and laws, including

affirmative action programs and policies to address past discrimination of women, that

women have faced; and article 81(b) that requires not more than two-thirds of the members of

elective public bodies be of the same gender. The Constitutional requirement to implement

this principle is therefore yet to be met, six years after the promulgation of the new

constitution, and over 3 years since the first elections under the new constitution.

In light of this disparity and the continued discrimination of women through unequal

representation, the Centre for Rights, Education and Awareness (CREAW), with support

from Forum Syd rolled out the Women Leadership and Governance program, whose purpose

was to improve the contribution of women leaders in the formulation of gender responsive

policies, legislation and projects.

A rapid assessment of Women and Leadership in Meru and Nyeri counties was carried out to

explore the political, community and other leadership structures and networks, and their

potential to support the leadership and governance programme towards the objective of

increasing the number of accountable and gender sensitive women `in political and non-

political decision making spaces in these counties. The key interests included: key political

and decision-making spaces in the two counties; local government structures that have low

representation of women; processes for accessing the spaces; and an assessment of these

spaces in relation to women aspirants in the forthcoming elections.

This study reveals that whereas there is a growing interest in leadership by women, most are

grappling with issues of confidence, a situation worsened by the highly patriarchal system

that defines the spaces for women as being at home, tending to chores and raising children.

On this basis, there is limited information on positions through which women can engage in

leadership, how they can access such positions, and in certain cases, some women have

questioned their own role in leadership. The male domination in leadership is clearly

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

manifested in the fact that both counties have the county governor, deputy governor, Speaker,

deputy speaker and clerks of the county assemblies being all male.

Cronyism and a highly patronized political party system also contribute to the limited interest

in, and engagement with political leadership. It stems from this that the best women hope for

is to be nominated, and even this has been corrupted by a lack of accountable procedures, that

some women have argued against the existence of nominated positions. This reflects, not

only a serious under-representation of women in governance and decision making structures,

but also an inherent disadvantage that even systems designed specifically for women to be

beneficiaries of representation and participation sometimes end up becoming tools for further

alienation of women and entrenchment of the status quo.

This report finds that women still have inadequate information on the range of positions

available to them to lead. The very low mention of positions such as governor, senator and

members of parliament as positions for women to lead hint at this scarcity of information.

Only one woman in the entire assessment mentioned the presidency of the republic as an

existing position of leadership that women can go for.

The role of culture on leadership becomes apparent when it emerges that women were asked

why they don’t engage more with leadership, and the common response was that they had

family responsibilities that couldn’t be abandoned. It appears men can make leadership as a

primary role and the family responsibilities secondary, but for women this is not a common

option. This could partly explain the other finding that very few women engaged in political

party activities at the county level despite mentioning having an interest in leadership. While

both men and women see nominations as useful this option has been used as a reward system

for their cronies, making nominated positions appear to lose focus on advancing women’s

participation and representation. The current low representation of women in governance and

leadership has confined women to believe the two-thirds gender principle simply means men

can be two-thirds, and women are the ones referred to in the remaining one-third.

The study also finds a largely skewed representation in leadership favouring men, with the

number of women further decreasing up the ranks of leadership in counties from a larger

number at ward administration level to no woman governor. In Meru, the Governor, deputy

and county secretary are all male, women make up only 2 of 5 CEC members, 2 out of 8

Chief Officers, 2 out of 6 directors, 2 out of 8 sub-county and town administrators, and 28 out

of 45 ward administrators. In Nyeri, the governor and deputy are male with a woman county

secretary, while women represent 1 out of 6 County Executive Committee members (CEC) ,

2 of 11 chief officers, 3 of 16 listed county directors, 1 of 8 sub county administrators, and 8

out of 30 ward administrators.

The report recommends a redoubling of efforts to sensitize both women and men on existing

structures that women provide space for women to engage in leadership. The sensitization

should also cover processes and contexts that shape elective politics, which information will

help women know when and how to engage with different leaderhip positions, a sensitization

process that requires a multi-stakeholder approach covering county leaders, women leaders

specifically, political party officials, state and non-state actors, just to mention a few. An

increased representation of women in decision-making and leadership positions in the

country will require enhanced capacities of both the women demanding for increased

leadership participation, as well as the supply side of women being able to take up any and all

positions of leadership.

Processes initiated in attempt to enhance the participation of women in leadership in the

counties must address the role of men, and the cultural influence on the idea of women

leadership. Cultural norms are strongly entrenched in the communities, and a status quo

maintenance is ultimately in the interest of the men as it secures their control through

leadership in the community. The same men can be champions as well as provide a support

system for the increased engagement of women in leadership. Such tactical targeting of men

in women empowerment activities will go a long way in increasing the sustainability of the

gains in women leadership.

There is a huge need to strengthen the ability of women leaders to effectively contribute to

the formulation and implementation of gender responsive policies and legislation. Increased

opportunities for women’s participation in leadership and decision-making will ultimately be

the end-product of well-crafted, context-specific, stakeholder-relevant interventions.

RAPID ASSESSMENT: WOMEN LEADERSHIP AND GOVERNANCE IN MERU AND NYERI COUNTIES

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1. INTRODUCTION

As at 2014 December, it was estimated that women made up only 21% of the national

parliaments and hold only 17% of ministerial positions globally.1 The same data source

suggests that women will not be equally represented in parliaments until 2065, and will not

make up half the world’s leaders until 2134, if the current trends persist. The 1948 Universal

declaration of human rights expressly recognizes in its Article 21 the right of all people to

participate in government, directly or through democratically elected representatives. The

2011 UN general assembly resolution on women and political participation reaffirmed that

active participation on equal terms with men, and at all levels of decision-making was

essential to the achievement of equality, sustainable development, peace and democracy. The

resolution calls upon all states to enhance political participation of women, and cites, among

others, “voting in elections and public referendums and being eligible for election to publicly

elected bodies on equal terms with men”2 (United Nations, 2012).

This call had been made earlier in the 1979 Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of

Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) by the same assembly3, which convention

provided for women the opportunity to participate in political and electoral processes, with

equal treatment for both men and women in these processes.

The Beijing Platform for Action4 also notes a large underrepresentation of women in power

and decision-making, and calls for women’s active and equal participation at all levels of

decision-making, without which the goals of equality, development and peace cannot be

achieved. The Platform for Action recognizes the universal declaration of human rights, that

provides for everyone to take part in the government of his or her country. The pursuit of

equal participation of men and women in decision-making will also be in line with the

International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights that seeks to safeguard every citizen’s

right and opportunity to take part in conducting public affairs, to vote and be elected in

genuine elections, and to have equal access to public service.

The constitution of Kenya vests all sovereign power in the people of Kenya, which power is

exercised following constitutionally prescribed processes., values and principles. Kenya’s

Constitution recognizes the equality of all persons and provides for the right to equal

treatment and equal opportunities in political, economic, cultural and social spheres (article

27). It also guarantees the right of every person to be free from discrimination and to enjoy

equal protection of the law. Cognizant of the cultural, historical and economic influences on

the society that is Kenya, the constitution goes further to highlight women, youth, persons

with disabilities and ethnic minorities as groups requiring distinct constitutional protection.

1https://www.vsointernational.org/sites/vso_international/files/vso_women_in_power_4-page_summary_sep2013_1.pdf 2 Emphasis added. 3 CEDAW http://www.ohchr.org/EN/ProfessionalInterest/Pages/CEDAW.aspx 4 Beijing Platform for Action http://www.un.org/womenwatch/daw/beijing/platform/decision.htm

https://www.vsointernational.org/sites/vso_international/files/vso_women_in_power_4-page_summary_sep2013_1.pdf

https://www.vsointernational.org/sites/vso_international/files/vso_women_in_power_4-page_summary_sep2013_1.pdf

http://www.ohchr.org/EN/ProfessionalInterest/Pages/CEDAW.aspx

http://www.un.org/womenwatch/daw/beijing/platform/decision.htm


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Kenya has initiated policies aimed at the active promotion of the rights of such groups, and

specific to leadership and governance, initiatives have included affirmative action to counter

existing inequality in representation. The constitution goes further to provide a requirement

that members of the elective public bodies shall not comprise of more than two thirds of the

same gender (article 81(b)). Article 177 (b) and 197 provides that gender principles apply in

County Assemblies and the County Executive Committees (CECs).

Despite strides made in increasing the democratic space in Kenya since Kenya’s

independence, women’s participation in decision-making processes in the country still

remains a difficult issue. Even with the promulgation of the current (2010) constitution,

hailed as a historic moment for the county5, and the view that it advanced the space of women

by according them equal rights in private and public life6, women engagement in elective,

appointive and nominative position in the country is still largely shadowed by the majority

male leadership, with unequal representation for women, who comprise just over 50% of the

county’s population (FIDA, 2015).

This is contrary to the spirit of the constitution that provides for gender equality as a

fundamental right, and the inherent acknowledgement of the inextricable value of women’s

voice in all decisions that affect them. Some of the effects of low women’s participation in

decision-making processes in Kenyan society are evident in minimal gender-sensitive

policies, and a willingness to backtrack on increasing the representation of women in

decision-making spaces in the country. This trend is almost a replication of the global picture,

with there being only 1 woman in five members of parliament globally, though women have

gained ground in parliamentary representation in nearly 90 per cent of the 174 countries over

the past 20 years, according to the Millennium Development Goals Report (2015). The report

rightly concludes whereas there has been continuous progress, the world, still has far to go

towards equal gender representation in private and public decision-making.

The objective of this Rapid Assessment Report is to understand the existing political and non-

political decision-making structures and spaces in the two counties of Nyeri and Meru, and

the level and quality of women engagement in these spaces. It will support CREAW’s

leadership and governance programme towards increasing the number of women in political

and non-political decision making spaces in the two Counties. CREAW’s activities support

both leadership and decision-making processes, thus pertinent is the difference between the

two for purposes of clarity:

Decision-making power is the influence of decisions that affect one’s public and

private life. Formal access to decision-making processes is therefore an important

condition for women to have decision-making power in the public domain, but it is

not sufficient in itself.

5https://www.issafrica.org/iss-today/kenya-beyond-the-constitutional-referendum 6http://www.globalissues.org/news/2010/09/09/6887

https://www.issafrica.org/iss-today/kenya-beyond-the-constitutional-referendum

http://www.globalissues.org/news/2010/09/09/6887


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Leadership can be defined as the individual and collective capabilities to mobilise

‘people and economic, political and other resources in pursuit of particular ends. It

may or may not coincide with being in public positions of authority. Leadership

therefore involves the ability to influence the ideas and behaviour of others and is

effective when it translates into outcomes, whatever the content of those might be

(Wales, 2016).

The assessment covers three key areas:

Key political and non-political spaces for women engagement in decision-

making

Representation of women in these decision-making spaces in the two counties,

Processes involved in order to access these spaces

challenges and opportunities for women in taking up these spaces, especially

in the forthcoming 2017 elections

Opportunities for enhanced participation by women in decision-making

By assessing these areas, the report intends to inform a review of the women leadership and

governance programme and related approaches to enhance women participation in decision-

making.

1.1. Problem

Key questions addressed during this Rapid Assessment are as follows:

What spaces exist for women to participate in decision-making in the counties?

What avenues exist for accessing these spaces?

What challenges do women face when engaging in these spaces?

What are the existing perceptions regarding gender-specific access to decision-

making spaces?

What are the attitudes towards women’s participation in elective positions?

How can women participation in decision-making be improved?

1.2. Contextual Background

On the backdrop of a history of consistently low levels of women representation in elective

posts, the 2013 elections didn’t necessarily surprise with the numbers. Prior to the 2013

elections, Kenya’s 10 parliaments had only elected 50 women, and nominated another 25, for

a total of seventy-five women over 11 elections.7Whereas the 2013 elections were lauded for

increasing the space for women in leadership through increased nomination slots resulting in

a record eighty six women elected and nominated to the eleventh Parliament, it is noteworthy

7https://ke.boell.org/sites/default/files/86_and_counting_bookweb_09_03_15.pdf

https://ke.boell.org/sites/default/files/86_and_counting_bookweb_09_03_15.pdf


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that in the senate, all 47 elected members were men, and not a single county out of 47 elected

a woman governor. The trend continues with only 16 women elected in the national

assembly, out of a total elected membership of 290. At the county level, the National Gender

and Equality Commission (NGEC) noted that only 82 women Members of the County

Assembly (MCA) were elected (6%) compared to 1,368 men (94%). This led to the reliance

on nomination where a total of 632 women had to be nominated against 146 men in the

counties.8

In appointive positions, currently only 5 cabinet secretaries out of 21 are women, yet the

constitution providing for a third representation of women in all public offices and elective

posts, a position reiterated by the Supreme court, that public elective bodies did not only refer

to the National Assembly, Senate or County Government but also included all public bodies

that elect or appoint representatives.9

Following the advisory opinion from the Supreme Court that the two-thirds gender rule was

progressive rather than immediate10, there is still a long way to go before the two thirds

gender requirement is observed, and even further before women, who make up slightly higher

than half of the population of the country, enjoy truly equal representation with their male

counterparts. One of the objectives of devolution is to give powers of self-governance to the

people and enhance the participation of the people in the exercise of the powers of the State

and in making decisions affecting them. Therefore, the increased representation of women in

decision-making qualifies as an enhancement of participation. Women participation can be in

elective and nominated positions, as well as appointive roles under the county government

structure.

8http://www.ngeckenya.org/AR2014/NGEC-FINAL-ANNUAL-REPORT-24TH-FEB-2014.pdf 9http://www.fidakenya.org/dr7/?q=node/166 10http://www.judiciary.go.ke/portal/assets/files/Rulings/Majority%20Decision-One%20Third%20Rule.pdf

http://www.ngeckenya.org/AR2014/NGEC-FINAL-ANNUAL-REPORT-24TH-FEB-2014.pdf

http://www.fidakenya.org/dr7/?q=node/166

http://www.judiciary.go.ke/portal/assets/files/Rulings/Majority%20Decision-One%20Third%20Rule.pdf


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1.3. Methodology

The methodology of this assessment includes relevant literature review on women,

governance and leadership in Kenya, qualitative research methods used included open-ended

and semi-structured interviews. Key informants included women leaders in elective,

appointive and community positions representing various levels of leadership at the county

level, while random sampling and snowball interviews were also applied in administering the

questionnaire. The design also incorporated quantitative data sourcing questions in the

administered questionnaire.

Data collection tools included notebooks for the verbal responses, as well as the

questionnaire’s themselves offering spaces under each question for the respondents who

wanted to write their responses by themselves to do so. The sampling methods applied were a

mix of stratified, purposive and snowball sampling, where random people were approached

within a given target area, with preference for female respondents, but a goal to include male

respondents. The study focused on Meru and Nyeri County residents as an intended sub-

group of the Kenyan population, and when possible, especially with key informant

interviews, snowball sampling technique was used to get recommendations for other key

informants the assessment could target.

The final sample reached covered a range of individuals selected to cover the key

demographic representation in the counties. Data collected was analysed through coding for

the open-ended questions, and for the structured ones, statistical analysis was carried out

using the excel tool. The data was then triangulated using the literature review carried out

prior to the fieldwork.

A team of eight enumerators underwent training on data collection, then reviewed and

validated the interview protocols before these were administered. The enumerators assisted in

data collection in various wards and sub-counties, while the principal researcher carried out

Key Informant Interviews with a range of leaders at different county and community levels.

1.4. General Demographics

The sample size for Meru and Nyeri counties was 166 respondents, 88 in Meru County, and

78 in Nyeri county. The breakdown by county will be covered under the specific county

reports, but for the combined gender-disaggregated data, the representation of the total

sample is shown in the pie chart in figure 1.1 below.

The assessment took a sample of 88 respondents in Meru county, and 78 in Nyeri county, for

a combined total of 166 respondents. The overall number of respondents in the two counties

was disaggregated by gender as shown below. Under the specific county reports, this data

will be further broken down to highlight the representative age groups, sub-counties and

wards.


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2. POLITICAL AND NON-POLITICAL DECISION-MAKING SPACES

Chapter 11 of Kenya’s constitution (2010) establishes devolved governance structures by

introducing the county governments with their respective administrative structures. The

essence of devolution includes, among others, the need for improving the representation of

the people in decision-making and governance.

The range of representation includes elective, nominative and appointive decision making

positions in various representative bodies at the county level including the following:

Body Positions

County Assembly MCAs (elected at representative ward level in each county)

Speakers (for each county assembly

Deputy Speakers

Clerks

Deputy Clerks

County Executive Governors

Deputy Governors

County Executive Committee Members11(max. 10 per county)

County Secretaries

County Chief officers

County Directors

Senate Senators

National Assembly Members of Parliament

Women Representatives

11Articles 179 (3) and 183 of the Constitution, and section 36(1) of the County Governments Act (2012).

Fig. 1.1: Gender Disaggregated data for all respondents in assessment.


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Whereas the County Assembly members are elected directly by their constituents, the county

executive committee members aside from governors are appointees of, and accountable to the

governor. The County Assembly Together with the governor and the deputy, the County

Executive members form the County Executive Committee that exercises executive power

and functions at county level.

Under the county executive are the chief officers, tasked under section 45 of the county

governments act with the responsibility for the administration of a county department under

the respective county executive committee member. County chief officers are nominated by

the governor, recommended by County Public Service Board (CPSB), and approved by the

county assembly. Other positions of leadership and decision-making that county residents can

actively seek at the county level include membership in various county boards e.g.:

County Assembly Service Board composed of the speaker, majority leader, minority

leader, clerk, and open to the county residents, is the position of 1 county resident, not

an MCA, appointed by County Assemblies to be part of the County Assembly Service

Board. Both Nyeri and Meru counties have male members as speaker, majority and

minority leaders and Clerk, meaning the board in both counties can only support the

appointment of women to the resident position, and even then, the two-thirds gender

rule will not be met, and nomination of an extra member of the board to achieve this

balance will be contrary to the guidelines in the County Governments Act.

County Public Service Board, established under Section 57 and 58 of County

Government Act of 2012, consists of a Chairperson (nominated and appointed by the

county Governor, not less than 3, but not more than 5 members appointed by the

governor with approval of the county assembly, and a certified public secretary.

Meru county has a seven-member board, of which two are women. Nyeri county, on

the other hand, has two-thirds of members being female, with 4 out of the 6 board

members being women.

County Land Management Board, with a secretary appointed by the National Land

Commission (NLC), 3-7 members appointed at the County level, with County

Assembly approval, and a surveyor/planner appointed by Governor, according to the

National Land commission act (2012).

Data for this board in both counties was unavailable, and therefore there is no

information as to the gender-disaggregated composition of the boards. However, with

five to nine members allowed to form the board, there is space for at least 2 women to

be appointed to the county Land Management Boards.

County Policing Authority Board, established under the National Police Service Act

(2011)12, section 41, especially part (e) that requires for every county policing

authority board to have at least six other members appointed by the Governor, from

among business groups, community based organizations, women, persons with special

needs and the youth, who are ordinarily resident in the county. This mean at the very

least, a woman will be represented through the women category. However, for the

12www.cickenya.org/index.php/legislation/acts/item/download/232_197f24c97a14d0d4f706ad545adea938

http://www.cickenya.org/index.php/legislation/acts/item/download/232_197f24c97a14d0d4f706ad545adea938


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upholding of the two-thirds gender rule, the board still has positions that can be

offered to women members to constitute part of the boards.

County Alcoholic Regulation Board, established under the 2010 Alcoholic Drinks

Control Act, specifically part (f) that requires three residents of the county to be

appointed through a competitive process to join the board.

Nyeri County data presents 4 members of the alcoholic regulation board, one being a

woman, and therefore falling short of the two-thirds principle. The county also has

sub-county Alcoholic Board with 8 women and 16 men. Data for Meru county was

not available during the duration of the assessment.

Nationally, there are 8 existing Water boards with regional coverage, as mandated by

the Water Act of 2002.13 The Water Bill (2014)14 is under review, and, if passed,

would create in each county a Water Works Development Board, which would

present another platform for women involvement in leadership and decision-making

in the counties. However, Nyeri county reported having county and sub-county water

boards in place.

County Education board established under the Basic Education Act (2013), section

17, and particularly section 20 that dictates the composition of the board, with 12

members aside from the chairperson. This provides for at least 4 women in each board

at the very least. While data for Meru County was unavailable, Nyeri reported 7

members in the education board, with two being women.

CDF management at county level as contained in the CDF Act (2013) including the

Constituency Development Fund Committees in each constituency, which part 2 (c) in

section 24 requires three women to be nominated by the ward development

committees. Data for this board in both counties was also unavailable during the

assessment.

School Boards (Primary, Secondary), Coffee and Tea Boards, Savings and Credit

Cooperative Societies (SACCOs), and religious entities such as churches also provide

leadership avenues at the county level for women.

13 Water act, http://www.wrma.or.ke/index.php/publications/water-act-2002.html 14 http://kenyalaw.org/kl/fileadmin/pdfdownloads/bills/2014/WaterBill2014.pdf

http://www.wrma.or.ke/index.php/publications/water-act-2002.html

http://kenyalaw.org/kl/fileadmin/pdfdownloads/bills/2014/WaterBill2014.pdf


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The County government act, in sections 48 to 53, also establishes decentralized service

delivery units at the county level, including:

a. Sub-county administrator: this office is established under section 50 of the county

governments act and the bearer’s responsibility includes coordination, management

and supervision of the general administrative functions under the sub-county level. the

bearer is appointed through the county public service board through a competitive

process. Two out of eight Sub-county administrators in Meru County are female, and

one out of eight in Nyeri county is female.

b. Ward administrator: an office established under section 51 of the county governments

act, the bearer being appointed through a competitive process by the county public

service board, and whose job is to coordinate, manage and supervise the general

administrative functions at the Ward level. Meru County has, on this level, more

women (28) than men (17) as ward administrators, while Nyeri County similarly has

eight women against 22 men in ward administration.

c. Village administrator: This position is also filled through acompetitive process by the

county public service board, and the village administrator’s mandate includes the


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coordination, management and supervision of the general administrative functions in

the village. The village administrator is also the chairperson of the village council.

d. The village council is composed of between 3 and 5 village elders competitively

appointed by the village administrator with the approval of the county assembly. The

village council formation must take into consideration the two-thirds gender principle.

There is no data verifying the existence of village council members and village elders, as

envisioned in the county administrative structure. With the county Governments Act in Part

VI setting out the village unit as a component of further decentralization, the positions of

village administrators and the village council are potential for quick wins for getting women

into positions of leadership.

The above-mentioned representative bodies are bound under article 175 of the constitution to

ensure that no more than two-thirds of the members of representative bodies in each county

government shall be of the same gender. This assessment was carried out in the counties of

Meru and Nyeri as an exercise to understand the existing decision making spaces in these

counties and in particular, the spaces for women in leadership.

Body Meru County Nyeri County

Women Men Women Men

Sub County Administrator 2 6 1 7

Ward Administrator 28 17 8 22

Village Council n/a n/a n/a n/a

Village administrators n/a n/a n/a n/a


Page | 11

3. MERU COUNTY ASSESSMENT REPORT

3.1. Introduction

Meru county lies to the east of Mt. Kenya bordering Laikipia County to the west, Nyeri to the

south west, Tharaka Nithi to the east and Isiolo to the North. It straddles the equator and has a

total area of 6,936.2 km2. Meru county comprises of nine administrative sub-counties which

are Tigania East, Tigania West, Igembe North, Igembe South, North Imenti, South Imenti,

Buuri, Igembe Central and Central Imenti. The county has a total of 45 electoral wards within

the nine sub-counties.

A core value espoused by the county is that of Inclusiveness, where the county commits to

involve people of all the diverse backgrounds in the county processes. The value is further

elaborated to incorporate perspectives of all people and to treat “all groups and members of

the county . . . equally without exception.”15

The county had a population of 1,356,301 during the last census of 2009, with females

outnumbering men at 685,645 and 670,656 respectively. The county integrated development

plan of 2013-2017 projected that the county will have a total of 1,601,629 people in 2017,

with 791,965 males and a slightly higher number of females at 809,665.

Women’s role in the day-to-day activities of the county are highlighted in the plan, with over

1,500 women groups active in the county as at 2012, and the county recorded 47 Cooperative

Societies with a membership of over 50,000 people.

15Meru CIDP http://meru.go.ke/file/20150518_meru_county_integrated_development_plan_2013_2017.pdf

http://meru.go.ke/file/20150518_meru_county_integrated_development_plan_2013_2017.pdf


Page | 12

Representing just over a half of the entire county’s population, the number of women in

leadership and decision making spaces at the county level is expected to reflect this near-par

status. However, in the 2013 elections, Meru county elected only 5 Members of the County

Assembly out of the 45 electoral wards available.

LEADERSHIP LEVEL FEMALE MALE

Sub County Administrators 2 6

County Chief Officers 2 6

Ward Administrators 28 17

County Chief Executive Committee Members 2 3

County Public Service Board 2 5

County Directors 2 4

3.2. Demographics

A total of 88 respondents were

participated in the rapid survey, and

filled in the questionnaire administered.

Gender: Of the total number of

respondents in Meru, 59.1% were

female, 36.4% were male, and 4.5% did

not fill in this category.

Age Group: The table below presents the age groups captured by the sample size selected in

Meru County.

Sub – Counties: 5 sub-counties out of a possible 9 were represented by the sample for Meru

County, with the most respondents being from Imenti South (39), followed by Tigania East

(18), Tigania West (16), Imenti North (12), and Igembe North (1). Two respondents did not

give their sub-counties.


Page | 13

Wards: Similarly, 15 wards out of 45 were represented, this indicating a 33.3% coverage for

wards in the sample. The wards included Municipality, Igoji East, Abogeta West, Nkuene,

Mikinduri, Thangatha, Muthara, Karama, Kiguchwa, Mitunguu, Abogeta East, Akithii,

Kianjai, Nkomo and Igoji West wards.

3.3. Access to decision making spaces.

In the questionnaire administered, a range of questions were to assess the perceptions existing

regarding the access to leadership positions by women in Meru County.

Question: What posts exist in the county for women to engage in leadership?

This was an open ended question in which the respondents were encouraged to list as many

of the positions as they could, starting with elective posts, nominative posts, and appointive

positions. The chart below shows the result to this question based on a weighted average (the

longer the bar/higher the number, indicates the number of times the answers positions were

mentioned in the interviews by respondents.

More than half of all respondents in Meru mentioned the Members of County Assembly (71),

the women representative (63), the Member of Parliament (49), the County Executive

Member (43), and the County Director (42) posts as positions for women to engage in

leadership at the county level.


Page | 14

It is insightful that only about a third of respondents felt the governor position was space for

women engagement in leadership, as was that of senator. This cements further the view that

women in positions of leadership are still at the lower levels, and not only in practice, but

also in the community’s view, an overarching belief in the role of women in leadership being

limited to elective posts, and even these cannot go higher than the Member of Parliament or

spread wider than the Women Representative post. This may be the glass ceiling of sorts in

women leadership.

Similarly, seven (7) respondents said they had no idea what positions existed at county level

for women to engage in leadership. This confined knowledge of the available positions may

provide some indication in terms of priority areas for awareness creation, advocacy and civic

education for state and non-state actors in the field of leadership, gender and governance.

That the respondents rarely considered the governorship as a possible avenue for women to

engage in leadership portrays on one hand a limited and unclear knowledge base concerning

women and leadership, and on the other hand, may indicate the continued impact that hitherto

existing cultural beliefs and practices may still be entrenched among the populations, and will

demand concerted efforts over time for a change inperception on how far women can engage

in leadership in Meru.

Other positions mentioned by only one respondent each included Chief Executive Officers

(CEOs) though there was no clarification of the bodies or institutions the CEOs would lead,

school heads, Maendeleo Ya Wanawake, Church Leaders, deputy governors, development

fund leaders, cabinet secretaries, factory directors, health coordinators, and clan leaders.

Question: In your opinion, do men and women have equal access to the existing spaces of

leadership and decision-making?

This question was semi-structured, with a “Yes or No” choice, in which the respondents were

to pick one, and followed by an open ended sub-question seeking a reason behind the choice

of either answer.

The responses were as follows:

Two thirds of the participants believe that women do not have equal access to positions of

leadership, whereas a third maintain that both men and women have equal access. For those

that believed equal access existed, the common explanations to this belief were that women

were free to contest for all elective positions, and that appointive positions were “advertised

for all”. This perception of “gender equality” was repeated by most of the proponents of the

existence of equal access to leadership.

However, those that opposed this notion of equal access mentioned the cultural influence that

limits women’s participation in elective processes, with a “stereotype that women cannot be

good leaders”, and that men “cannot be led by a woman”.


Page | 15

Few women applying for high level vacancies, but a

majority do for ECDE-related and secretarial roles -

County Public Service Board official

That leadership

positions are still

perceived as a

preserve of men is a

major limiting factor

that affects both the

willingness of women

to vie for elective

positions, as well as

the acknowledgement

of men that women

can lead just as well

as men can.

Specific to the nominative and appointive positions was the perception that women needed

“godfathers” to be able to get nominated or appointed to the existing top leadership positions.

Seeing as most of these appointments are through the county governor, especially in the

county government structure, the lack of connections to put in a good word for the interested

women has made many women to shy away from leadership.

The ways in which women can access

leadership positions, aside from the

elective processes are the nomination

and appointment routes. However, a

crucial factor in accessing nomination slots is active participation in the affiliated political

parties. This, according to

some respondents, was why

women do not benefit from

many appointive and/or

nominative positions at the

county and national level. An

aspect of training and

sensitization on how to

engage in active party politics

may enhance the chances of

the program to achieve its

goal of increased women

participation in leadership

and governance.

Fig. 3.4: Perception on equal access to leadership positions.


Page | 16

3.3.1. Gender Representation in decision-making spaces

The survey was also to gauge the perceived and actual gender representation in decision

making spaces, considering the principle of devolution that provides that not more than a two

thirds of any public body will be of the same gender.

Question: In your opinion, is women representation in leadership positions in the county high

or low?

This question was similarly semi-structured, with a “Yes or No” choice, and an open ended

follow-up question seeking a reason behind the choice of either answer. The response rate

was as follows:

A surprising majority of respondents (90 percent) were of the view that there was low

representation of women in leadership in the county. They characterized the representation of

women in the leadership as low, while only 9 percent said the representation was high.

The remaining 1 percent did not answer this question.

For those who opined that women representation was high in leadership positions in Meru

County largely argue around the constitutional provision for specific seats for women,

including a women representative and the nominations that followed the elections of 2013.

From this provision and the specific special seats for women, some respondents conclude that

women representation in leadership is therefore high. One respondent argues that “very few

women were elected, [but] appointments [are] high”.

For the respondents who sided with low representation in this particular question, repeated

reasons for this stance included comments such as “all crucial positions are taken by men”,

“ratio of men to women is 10:1”.

The statistic is important for women in leadership, as a crucial step towards changing an

unequal system is the reaching of an initial general realization that there is an inequality.

It seems that whereas

people notice the

disparity in election

of women to

leadership, some find

the ensuing

nominations are

bridging the gender

gap in leadership. The reliance on nominations will only offer a temporary solution to the

inequality in leadership, but a stronger democracy will elect both men and women as leaders,

and the role of nominations would only be for very few and rare instances.

Question: How would you rank the space for women participation in decision making in the

county?


Page | 17

This was an interval scale question designed to assess the potential receptivity of a program

towards increased

women participation in

leadership and

governance. The scale

offered ranged from

“Excellent”, “Good”,

“Can do better”, “Bad”,

to “Terrible”.

The answers by

respondents in Meru

county are represented in

figure 3.6.

There was an overwhelming consensus that the space for women to engage in leadership in

the county was there, but needed major improvements. Most issues affecting women

attempting to become leaders were community-initiated, and these could therefore be easily

removed. An example is the harsh competition that sometimes invokes gender based violence

against women aspirants. Similarly, support and a largely patriachal structure always affected

the women comparatively worse than men during election-seeking.

3.3.2. Gender representation in county administration

Women at sub-county level: A snapshot from the county website shows that 2 out of 7 sub-

county administrators and 1 town administrator are women.16 This would represent a quarter

of the total number and therefore fall short of the gender principle. However, county

respondents suggested that 4 out of 9 sub county administrators were women, 2 out of the

current 9 chief officers were women, just as 3 out of 10 county executive committee members

were women.

3.4. Lens on decision making spaces

A question was asked of the respondents, to offer an opinion on the 2017 elections, and how

they thought the women aspirants would fare. The responses here reflected the views and

underlying notions of success specific to female candidates in elections. From the responses

answers, the data was analysed with results presented in the figure below:

16Meru County Government Website at: http://meru.go.ke

http://meru.go.ke/


Page | 18

“We are many, we can win.”

Female, Nkuene Ward, Meru.

There was a near equal

split between those

that think women will

have a high rate of

success in 2017

elections and those

that think the success

rate will be low, with

a difference of only

5% more for those

that believe women

aspirants will highly

succeed.

For those that sided

with a high success

rate for women in 2017, the most mentioned reasons included: that more awareness having

been created in the communities (20); that the women who had become leaders had proven

themselves, and women as leaders (6). Other reasons included government support for

women, the constitution demanding more women leaders. A single comment yet worth

mentioning here is the view that those women that had been nominated to leadership

positions had shown that they were capable, and so they would try elective posts next.

with the group that said women aspirants

would have a low success rate in 2017,

the majority blamed this on culture and

society, with a common theme presented

that society was not ready for a women

leaders (14). Interestingly, the family was also mentioned as a reason for potentially low

women aspirant success in the next general elections, with the spouses getting a fair mention

as a problem. A different yet related comment on the family that was mentioned was the idea

that women vying for elections was synonymous with marriage breakdown.

Other reasons given in the category of low success rate for women aspirants included no

support from various quarters including the spouses, community and a special mention of

other women. Another reason was that women leaders had not performed well and therefore

had set a bad example, yet others blamed a lack of confidence, no interest and no resources

for the interested women to engage with the elective process.

3.5. Challenges to women participation in leadership

In order to understand the differences in perception between men and women on challenges

hindering women from greater participation in leadership in Meru county, a question was

floated to prompt answers in this regard. The respondents were requested to write their


Page | 19

Top challenge to women leadership -

descending priority

Challenge Men

Inadequate Finance 9

Lack of Skills 5

Culture 4

Lack of confidence 3

Lack of support 3

inequality 3

answers in order of priority, with the biggest challenge being at the top of the list, and the

least challenge being the last. The report disaggregates their responses by gender.

Question: What are the main hindrances or challenges to greater women participation in

leadership?

Disaggregated data: Females

For female respondents, the results showed that most women had as a top challenge a lack of

confidence (top of the list for 12 women),

followed by cultural challenges (11

women’s top problem), a lack of adequate

finance (10 women mentioned this as their

priority challenge), men/husbands/spouses

were used interchangeably, but made the 4th

top challenge with 7 women prioritizing it

over all the rest. Lastly, only 6 women saw

the lack of knowledge, skills or education

as a top challenge to women participation in leadership.

Disaggregated data: Males

The males’ responses and ranking to this question differed from the responses by the female

gender. Male respondents perceive the

biggest challenge to women participation

in leadership to be finances (top for 9

males), the lack of education, knowledge

and skills as a top challenge according to 5

males, 4 males prioritized culture as a top

challenge to women participation in

leadership, whilst inequality between men

and women, the lack of support from

family and community, and the lack of

confidence each came as a top challenge for 3 males respectively.

The responses reveal the gendered experiences when it comes to women in leadership in

Meru County. Whereas the majority of men consider limited access to financial resources as

the top challenge for women to participate in leadership, women in the sample group saw the

lack of confidence and existing cultural barriers as greater challenges compared to financial

resource access.

That confidence is top on the list for women interviewed in the rapid assessment might be an

indication of an existing environment that in one way or another takes away the confidence of

women and limit their ability to interact with the positions and processes of decision-making,

or end up in passive roles, thereby facing adverse inclusion.


Page | 20

A different but similarly crucial result is the clearly gendered view that men (also referred to

as husbands or spouses in the interviews) were cited as a top challenge to greater women

participation in leadership by women respondents, whereas not one male respondent

mentioned this as a top challenge. Nonetheless, it is worth mentioning that some males listed

“men” as a challenge to women engagement in decision-making (see graph below), though

not as a top challenge.

A lack of confidence by women, limited financial resources, cultural barriers, and the lack of

skills were mentioned by both male and female respondents in their answers to the top

challenges for greater women participation in leadership. This similarity in responses for top

challenges highlights the shared experiences when it comes to women and leadership.

A further analysis of the data coded and aggregated all the responses to the question of

challenges facing women’s participation in leadership. The intention was to follow from

finding out the top priority challenges, to establish which challenges were mentioned by most

of the respondents, regardless of the order of priority. The results are presented in the figure

below.

Whereas the lack of financial resources was not the top challenge for women, in the

aggregated results finances take a central role in Meru. This could be indicative of the

monetization of leadership in Meru county, that even capable women leaders face challenges

and are limited in their leadership roles if they do not have access to finances. Noting the

differences in accessing such resources and the means to the same, it is clearly a major

problem for women’s participation in leadership.

Fig. 3.10: Most mentioned challenges to women leadership by gender


Page | 21

Related to the lack of financial resources is the arising challenge of corruption, mentioned by

a few respondents from both males and females. The view that corruption not only affects,

but even sometimes determines the outcome of elective, nominative and appointive processes

means that women leadership

empowerment processes must be

supported, and complemented by efforts

to create awareness on corruption, and

limit the adverse effects the vice has on

leadership.

Whereas inequality was raised by some of the respondents, both male and female, as one of

the challenges to women in leadership, more men than women mentioned it as a challenge.

This may be a reflection of an acknowledgement of the unequal society in which women are

unfairly expected to participate in decision-making through the same processes as men.

Lastly, a useful response was that of insecurity, raised only by some women respondents in

the survey. The electoral process was described as one that is characterized by violence, and

intimidation, and therefore the setting itself, rigs the system against women. Some women

claimed having to avoid late evening campaigns for example, whereas their male counterparts

campaigned day and night, inadvertently benefiting from insecurity. That no man raised

insecurity as an issue also draws a sharp contrast in men and women accessing and

competing for leadership and decision making processes and positions.

Question: In what ways can women participation in leadership at both political and

community level be strengthened?

Most of the respondents (48) mentioned the need for greater awareness creation and civic

education on women and leadership in the county. Similarly, training and empowerment of

women was also mentioned by 40 respondents, financial support to women aspirants was the

third most mentioned way to strengthen women’s participation in leadership. Support and

encouragement for women (26), and more appointments (9) were also raised as ways to

strengthen women leadership at the community.

It can be argued that there is a link in the solutions suggested, especially awareness creation,

civic education and training as solutions to the major problems of the lack of confidence, and

the cultural barriers that were raised mainly by women respondents.


Page | 22

Similarly, the

monetized

nature of

leadership and

decision

making

processes gains

even more

credence with

the fact that the

belief that

financial

support will

strengthen

women

participation in

leadership was

the third most suggested solution.

Other ways to strengthen women participation in leadership at both political and community

level included: Security (3); Build reputation with public (4); SHG (5); Vie, (4); Equality (5);

Networks (1); end corruption; and 4 said they did not know how.


Page | 23

4. NYERI COUNTY ASSESSMENT REPORT

4.1. Introduction

Nyeri County is one of the five counties situated in what was formerly known as Central

Province, with its largest town being Nyeri town. It has a population of 661,156. The county

covers an area of 2,475.4 Km2and borders Laikipia, Kirinyaga, Murang’a, Nyandarua and

Meru Counties.

From the National Census of 2009, the total population of Nyeri County 693,558 with males

representing 339,725 (49%) of the total, while females made up the remainder (49%)with

353,833. This population is projected to have grown to 720,708 by 2017.17

Nyeri County has 8 sub-counties including Tetu, Kieni East, Kieni East, Mathira West,

Mathira East, Othaya, Mukurweni, and Nyeri Town. The sub counties are further

decentralized into 30 wards, in which, in 2013 general elections elected 30 male Ward

Representatives. 17 members of the County Assembly were nominated to represent People

with Disability, Women and Youth.

Number of Electoral Wards in Nyeri County 30

Number of Women elected as Members of the County

Assembly in the 30 Wards

0

Number of women nominated to the County Assembly 16

17 Data from the Kenya Population and Housing Census, 2009


Page | 24

The county notes in the County Integrated Development Plan - CIDP (2013-18) a mission to

help residents “achieve the highest standards of political, social and economic life” through

creating an enabling environment for this achievement.18

Similarly, the CIDP acknowledges under its Gender, Culture and Social Services sector the

need to formulate, mainstream and implement responsive policies through

coordinatedstrategies. However, the planned county response appears to address the social

services sub-sector more directly, with not much in gender mainstreaming. For example,

whereas the sub-sector priority identifies the need for gender mainstreaming, and the strategy

includes getting updated data and community sensitization, both the ongoing projects and

programs, as well as the identified new project proposals do not in any way apply these

strategies, apart from an intent to ensure the prudent utilization of the Women Enterprise

Fund (CIDP, pg.167).

With over 4,000 active women groups in the county, covering an estimated 89,000 women, it

is a clear opportunity and avenue for the county to interact with women towards moving from

a broad-brush approach to a more targeted, elaborate plan and strategy towards gender

equality.

The same questionnaire administered in Meru county was also administered in Nyeri county,

and the results and analysis are presented under the demographics section below.

4.2. Demographics

A total of 88 respondents were participated in the rapid survey, and filled in the questionnaire

administered.

Gender: Of the total number of

respondents in Nyeri County,

51% were female, 33% were

male, and 16% did not fill in this

category.

Age Group: The table below

presents the age groups captured

by the sample size selected in

Nyeri County. The N/A category

represents the number of

respondents that did not indicate

the age group on the administered

questionnaire.

18Nyeri County CIDP http://www.nyeriassembly.go.ke

http://www.nyeriassembly.go.ke/


Page | 25

Sub – Counties: 6 sub-counties out of a possible 8 were represented by the sample for Nyeri

County, with the most respondents being from Mukurwe-ini (26), followed by Nyeri Town

(22), Tetu (15), Othaya (12), Kieni East (2), and Kieni West (1).

Wards: 18 wards out of 30 were represented, this indicating a 60% coverage for wards in the

sample. The wards included Kiganjo/Mathari, Rware, Gatitu /Muruguru, Ruring'u, Kamakwa

/Mukaro, Gikondi, Rugi, Mukurwe-Ini Central, Dedan Kimathi, Wamagana, Aguthi- Gaaki,

Mahiga, Iria-Ini, Chinga, Karima, Gatarakwa, and Mwiyogo/ Endarashawards.

4.3. Access to decision making spaces

In the questionnaire administered in Nyeri County, one of the questions asked was to assess

the perceptions existing in the county regarding the access to leadership positions by women.

Question: What posts exist in the county for women to engage in leadership?

This was an open ended question in which the respondents were encouraged to list as many

of the positions as they could, starting with elective posts, nominative posts, and appointive

positions. The chart below shows the result to this question based on a weighted average (the

longer the bar/higher the number, indicates the answers that ranked highest in terms of

positions:


Page | 26

Nyeri County’s sample group had over half of all respondents mention the Member of the

County Assembly as a position for women to engage in leadership. Even the women

representative position only was mentioned by just over 30% of the respondents. This may

reflect a lack of knowledge on the affirmative positions and what they mean for the people. A

useful derivation for stakeholders will be the prioritization of the range of county appointive

positions that are open for any citizen to engage in leadership at the county level. Greater

sensitization will increase the critical mass to protect the spaces for women to engage in

leadership from deterioration.

Appointive positions, from the graph, have the least knowledge among the community

members. CECs, county directors of departments, Chief officers and county board members

were the least mentioned positions for women leadership. The limited and unclear

knowledge base concerning governance, women and leadershipmay also be an indicator of

the continued influence of culture and societal pressure that demotivates equal engagement

with leadership. Whereas this can be changed through a multi-stakeholder response, the CIDP

reveals confined strategy that, as it is, may fall short of realizing equal opportunities for

women as men in leadership.

Other positions mentioned fewer than 5 times included: county assembly speaker (3), coffee

factory chair (3), SACCOs leader (3), school principles (3), church leaders (2), chief of staff

(2), women groups leaders (2), Nyumba Kumi head (2), governor’s advisors, Community

Development Fund (CDF) representatives, women’s guild, deacons, preachers, treasurer,

heads of parastatals, preachers, and Maendeleo ya Wanawake leaders.

Question: In your opinion, do men and women have equal access to the existing spaces of

leadership and decision-making?

This was a question semi-structured with a “Yes or No” choice, and an open ended follow-up

to establish reasons behind the choices made by the respondents. The responses were as

follows:

Almost two thirds

(63%) of the

respondents believe

women do not have

equal access to

positions of

leadership, whereas

a smaller fraction

(38%) think women

do have equal access

to leadership

positions and spaces.


Page | 27

For the latter group, the constitution of Kenya, with the aspects of gender equality (human

rights, 2/3 gender principle) is the most cited reason for there being equal access to positions

of leadership for women as there are for men, and others believe the fact that some women

are in leadership positions already is a sign of equal access.

However, for the group that disagrees with the notion of equal access, the most mentioned

reason is the number of challenges that women face in their quest for leadership participation

(these will be highlighted in greater details later on in the report). Some in this group give the

example of very low number of women in leadership as an indicator of unequal access, in

contrast to the first group that takes the existence of the few women leaders as indicating

equal access.

4.3.1. Gender Representation in elected spaces

This survey also sought to establish the perceived and actual gender representation in

decision making spaces, considering the principle of devolution that provides that not more

than a two thirds of any public body will be of the same gender.

Question: In your opinion, is women representation in leadership positions in the county high

or low?

This question was semi-structured, with a “Yes or No” choice, and an open ended follow-up

question seeking a reason behind the choice of either answer. The response rate was as

follows:

A surprising majority of respondents were of the view that there was low representation of

women in leadership in the county. Over two-thirds of respondents felt the representation of

women in county leadership positions was low, with less than 10% agreeing that women

representation was high in the county. A small proportion (3 percent) did not answer this

particular question.

For those who sided with

the notion that women

representation was high in

leadership positions in the

County, reasons given

included a comparison of

current numbers with ‘the

past’, and a feeling that

people were more

enlightened now.

On the other hand, those

that argued women


Page | 28

representation in leadership positions in the county was low largely cited the challenges that

faced women when they considered political or appointive office, the most common cited

challenge was the family responsibilities that appear to suffer when women attempt to take up

leadership opportunities, and the view that “men have not accepted that women can be

leaders”. Some of the respondents also suggested the representation of women was low due

to low awareness by women on what they can go for, as there were those that argued the two-

thirds gender principle was notmet in the county. A smaller number cited the lack of women

leaders who were elected as evidence for low representation of women in the county

leadership positions.

4.3.2. Gender representation in county administration

A triangulation of respondents from the county key informants showed that 1 out of 8 sub-

county administrators is female, while 8 out of 30 ward administrators are also female. 2 out

of the current 9 chief officers were said to be women, and 1 out of 9 county executive

committee members is female, though this position was said to be in acting capacity. The

County Public Service Board was said to have 4 women on the board, presenting the only

other appointive administrative body aside from the ward administrators that meets the two-

thirds gender principle.

LEADERSHIP LEVEL FEMALE MALE

Sub County Administrators 1 7

County Chief Officers 2 7

Ward Administrators 8 22

County Chief Executive Committee Members 1 9

County Public Service Board 4 6

County Directors 3 13

Other bodies include 8 sub-counties alcoholic regulation committees that have 8 female

members against 16 males, and 8 sub county water boards with 8 female members as opposed

to 40 males.

Question: How would you rank the space for women participation in decision making in the

county?

The survey applied an interval scale question to assess the county views on women

participation in leadership and governance. The scale ranged from “Excellent”, “Good”, “Can

do better”, “Bad”, to “Terrible”.

The answers by respondents in Nyeri County were as follows:

A half of the respondents reached in Nyeri County felt that the county could do better on

space for women participation in decision making, followed by those who thought the county

was doing badly in this area (27%). Those who ranked the spaces for women participation as


Page | 29

terrible, and those that felt it was good tied at 12%. Not one respondent ranked the space as

excellent.

The large proportion of respondents who answered that the county could do better arguably

present an opening for programs, strategies and ideas that will improve the spaces for women

to engage in decision making. The general trend may be interpreted as a positive outlook

offering opportunities, rather than a possibly resigned view that would present challenges to

any women empowerment efforts.

4.4. Lens on decision making spaces

In the survey, the respondents were asked for their opinion on how they thought women

aspirants would

perform in the

2017 elections.

The responses

reflected the

views and

underlying

notions of

success and

failure specific to

female

candidates in

elections. From

the given

responses

answers, the data


Page | 30

“It is only 17 months to elections, and no [woman]has declared interest.”

Female, Kimathi Ward,

Nyeri.

was analysed with results presented in the figure 4.8 below:

The results show very low

expectations for women in 2017, with

the majority of respondents (82%)

believing women have low chances of

succeeding in 2017. Less than 10%

think women have high chances of

succeeding, while a similarly smaller

percentage (9) said they had no idea of

the chances women had.

With the overwhelming majority

siding with the view that women

aspirants have low chances of success

in 2017, the reason mentioned by most

respondents (26) was that women had

shown little or no interest in the elective politics, despite the elections being only a few

months away. Other reasons offered for expected low success included the current status that

has few women in elective positions (9 respondents), a lack of funds to campaign (9

respondents), a curious one being that women were their own enemies and would not support

their own (9 respondents), and a lack of awareness on the possibility of women in leadership

positions in the county (7 respondents).

For the respondents that anticipated a high success rate by

women aspirants in 2017, their reasons were that unlike

2013, there was increased awareness among the voters.

Other reasons offered included that women were more

motivated now than before, that current women leaders had

performed well, and there was hope for the coming elections.

4.5. Challenges to women participation in leadership

To understand the differences in perception between men and women on the top challenge

hindering women from greater participation in leadership in Meru county, the survey design

incorporated a question to prompt answers in this regard. The respondents were asked to

write, in order of priority, the challenges that women face when trying to access leadership

and decision-making processes and spaces. The report disaggregates their responses by

gender.

Question: What are the main hindrances or challenges to greater women participation in

leadership?

Disaggregated data: Females

For female respondents, the results showed that most women had as a top challenge a lack of

finance (top of the list for 11women), followed by intimidation (6women), a lack of family


Page | 31

support (5 women) confidence (4), a lack of awareness (3) Discriminating culture (3) and one

woman each mentioned women as a challenge to themselves, church discouraging leadership

for women, and corruption.

Disaggregated data: Males

The males’ responses and ranking to the

question of challenges to women leadership

in Nyeri county differed from the responses

by the female category. Male respondents

perceive the biggest challenge to women

participation in leadership to be finances

(top for 12 males), fear of violence in

politics (6), a lack of interest (3), culture

(3), 2 men each saw a lack of awareness,

inferiority feeling, women themselves, and

a lack of support as the top challenges, and

1 male mentioned the church as a barrier to

women leadership.

A small number of respondents did not choose either the male or female options, and their

answers to the same question on the top challenges facing women’s access to leadership

positions also rank inadequate finance as the top challenge with 6 respondents agreeing with

this prioritization, whereas 3 respondents cited a lack of confidence as the top challenge for

women in leadership.

The responses reveal a similarity in the experiences when it comes to women in leadership.

The monetization of leadership appears to affect men’s view on challenges women face in

leadership, the same way as it affects women themselves. All respondent categories see

limited access to financial resources as the top challenge for women trying to access

leadership spaces in Nyeri county.

The role of money is mentioned in relation to both elective and appointive positions, with

those seeking elective leadership positions needing finances to campaign, without which

finances the respondents assume women attaining leadership positions through elections will

be difficult. On the other hand, elements of corruption also bring into focus the extent to

which finances are seen as key to leadership for women.


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A further analysis of the data coded and aggregated all the responses to the question of

challenges facing women’s participation in leadership. The intention was to follow from

finding out the top priority challenges, to establish which challenges were mentioned by most

of the respondents, regardless of the order of priority. The results are presented in the figure

4.10 below.

As with the disaggregated data, the comparative data also shows the lack of financial

resources being perceived as the leading challenge to women leadership in Nyeri county. The

general overwhelming belief is that women are held back from active and equal participation

in decision-making and leadership due to the lack of financial resources. This could be

symptomatic of the phenomenon of monetization of leadership and office-seeking in Meru

county, that even when women want to engage, they still will be held back without financial

resources.

Similarly, Nyeri County respondents see a lack of education and awareness on the avenues

that exist for women to engage in leadership, which also causes poor strategies in office

seeking. However, some respondents felt that it is fear that limits women participation in

leadership processes and positions, especially the fear of being ridiculed, and the fear of

failing.

Related to fear is the insecurity that was mentioned as a hindrance, where elective positions

and processes to access these are fraught with election violence and intimidation. With men

being able to campaign into the night, women aspirants are, from the onset at a disadvantage

as they do face very specific violence towards them unlike their male counterparts. Some

women claimed they have had to hire groups of Related to fear is the insecurity that was

mentioned as a hindrance, where elective positions and processes to access these are fraught


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“when a woman shines in the community, other

people poison the husband with stories that she was

talking ‘nicely’ with a certain other politician, causing

suspicion and loss of support from the husband.”

Former Councillor, Mukurwe-ini, Nyeri.

with election violence, abuse and intimidation. With men being able to campaign into the

night, women aspirants are, from the onset at a disadvantage as they do face very gender-

based violence towards them unlike their male counterparts. Some women claimed they have

had to hire groups of youths to provide security, but engaging these groups require already

scarce resources.

When terms of support towards

women leadership, the family, the

church and the community are

sources of challenges to women

seeking leadership positions, with

women claiming they have to

prioritize their families, otherwise

the community thinks they have neglected them, the husbands fear that the wives will be

“stolen” if they get into politics, and the church was mentioned as opposing women being

leaders, with the repeated mantra of “the husband is the head” and “women should “submit”,

which views trigger negative reception when women engage in leadership processes,

particularly women who are married. Conversely women consistently give “family

responsibilities” as a reason for staying away from leadership in the county.

From the data reviewed, there was little disparities in cumulative numbers between male and

female respondents, except when it came to family, community and corruption, where the

difference between male and female respondents was starkly visible, perhaps indicating a

lack of internalization by males on their contribution towards limited women leadership,

especially under community and family, as men are the direct beneficiaries through unequal

opportunities and patriarchy in the community, as well as the perceived victims in the family

when women engage in leadership.

Culture, Corruption, low self-esteem and low interest were also mentioned as challenges to

women leadership. Culture was said to contribute to the feeling that women were inferior and

only men could lead, while low self-esteem by women contributed to low interest in

leadership positions.

Corruption was said to discourage women from engaging in office-seeking processes as

these, from nominations, to party politics and internal elections were marred with corruption

at every turn. Connected to this is the view that women who got nominated into leadership

turned out to be very poor leaders as they were not chosen on merit. One respondent even

suggested that the whole process of nominating women to fulfil the gender principle

requirement was fuelling corruption, and should be done away with.

Question: In what ways can women participation in leadership at both political and

community level be strengthened?

Most of the respondents (41) saw the need for greater training and empowerment on women

and leadership in the county, as they mentioned capacity-building, improved qualifications


Page | 34

and getting education as ways to strengthen women participation in leadership. The second

most suggested way was civic education, linking the empowerment of the individual to the

knowledge base of the community and context of operation. Respondents emphasized the

need to have civic education for women, but also civic education for the community itself.

For those that suggested encouragement (28 respondents), a specific distinction was made for

encouragement from men in general, encouragement from husbands, and encouragement

from the community. Such a layered response may denote a dynamic discouraging force that

challenges women in their attempts to engage in leadership and decision making.

Some respondents (16) suggested that the way to strengthen women leadership was to push

for greater equality, including upholding the constitution, while others suggested greater

equality could be through improving the two-thirds gender principle. Curiously, a section of

these respondents suggested an “improvement” of this gender rule from two-thirds to 50/50,

obviously oblivious of the principle’s meaning, where the two-thirds could be women, and

therefore numerically better than 50/50. The assumption here is that for these respondents,

the two-thirds gender principle is taken to mean the one-third is the fraction for women, not

men.

The monetization of leadership and decision making processes is supported by 15

respondents who suggested that funding women in their campaigns was a way to strengthen

their participation in leadership. The common thread is that leadership, elective or appointive,

is expensive, and therefore requires more than just the desire to lead.

12 respondents mentioned the need for women to participate actively in political parties and

contest for leadership positions in those parties, with some making the connection from this,


Page | 35

that it was those that were active in party politics that became known and consequently were

easily picked for appointments and nominations to leadership positions. Women avoiding

engaging in party activities at county level was therefore seen as one of the reasons even

appointments did not favour them.

Also connected to engagement in local politics was the notion that women becoming leaders

in their own communities was a way to strengthen their leadership skills and to seek for

higher and more demanding positions. This need to engage in community leadership first was

suggested by 10 respondents, and was also linked directly to the community getting to know

who can lead, and thus vote for them should they vie for elective positions of leadership.

Other ways to strengthen women participation in leadership at both political and community

level included the view that women would strengthen their chances if they behaved well (3

respondents), explained as women acting in a way that made the community know them, and

a suggestion by 2 respondents that young women should be nurtured from a young age so that

they can have the skills and experience to become leaders when they grow up.


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5. FINDINGS

Women still have low awareness of the range of positions that are available to them. While

the gender-specific positions such as women representative and the nominated MCA are

easily mentioned in conversation, there is a stark contrast with the very low mention of

positions such as governor, senator and members of parliament. Only one lady, in the entire

survey mentioned the presidency as an existing position of leadership that women can go for.

The level of civic education on this positions is generally low.

The role of culture on the engagement around leadership also comes out from the discussions

on leadership, where most respondents mentioned culture as one of the challenges to

leadership. That women were historically confined to roles in the home, the same view is still

predominant in the counties visited, and even from women themselves, a common response

to the question on why they don’t engage more with leadership is the fact that they have

family responsibilities. It is unsurprising that this is prioritized by women but not men who

engage in politics in the same way. While men can be leaders as a primary role and the

family responsibilities come after, for women this is largely inconceivable. This may be

partly influenced by a cultural gap, caused by the attitude that women have about what is

expected of them in the society due to their gender, often affecting their behaviours in the

workplace, from their communication styles to their leadership styles (Oliech et al., 2015).

This cultural gap, where existent, is further reinforced by hostile male behaviour towards

women who take up any interest in pursuing leadership positions.

Most respondents did mention the interest in leadership, but few engaged in political party

activities at the county level. Acknowledging that the political party is the common vehicle

for contesting for political leadership and for nominations, there is a gap in these two

processes, where women seek political leadership, and are planning to vie for political

positions, but very few engage in political party activities. It is worth noting that the limited

engagement is both a result of an unclear understanding of political and leadership processes,

as well as a feeling of exasperation by those trying to engage in party political who claim that

cronyism and corruption will carry the day in party politics, no matter how active they are in

the parties.

The sheer weight lent to the role of nominations in leadership positions is worrying, as both

men and women see even more nominations as a solid leadership process worth maintaining.

However, as opponents to this posit, nominations have been used by political victors to

reward undeserving cronies, friends and family at the detriment of the rest of the county and

willing leaders with greater potential. Similarly, some women have equated nominations of

women to leadership positions as a peace-meal leadership response that has a single role of

fulfilling a constitutional requirement, but nothing to

do with promoting women leadership. An example

given in this regard is the political and financial

powerlessness that women representatives and other

nominated representatives suffer in their posts.

Nominations can serve as a temporary solution, but

There is a difference between

women’s formal and actual

power. Nominations ultimately

appeal to formal, rather than

actual power.


Page | 37

concrete processes and actions need to be developed around women and leadership towards a

more meaningful position for women leaders. Nominations cannot, and must not be the

permanent solution, as it appears to both empower and disempower women with near-equal

measure.

Lastly, the representation of women in governance and leadership is still nowhere near their

actual numbers in the population. The current state of affairs has confined women to believe

the two-thirds gender principle simply means men can be two-thirds, and women are the ones

referred to in the remaining one-third. It is no wonder that some women agitate for what they

refer to as an improvement of the constitution, to have a 50/50 balance. With clear and fair

leadership attainment processes, and an enabling environment around women in governance

and leadership, women can make the two-thirds, in which case the 50/50 amendment would

actually limit their spaces.

However, with the current low representation, it can be understood why the feeling is that

50/50 share that is constitutionally mandated will offer women greater representation.

6. CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Based on the responses on women and leadership spaces and challenges facing Meru and

Nyeri counties, the report’s key findings can be summarized as follows:

1. Women are willing to engage in leadership at the counties, but they face a range of

challenges that confine this willingness to a distant interest. The sheer range of

positions across county and national structures that are accessible by women is

staggering, yet the lack of knowledge of these openings may partly limit the

participation of women. The positions across the county leadership structures do not

meet a commensurate information base and uptake from the women. More needs to be

done to balance the information with the spaces, to enhance the likelihood of greater

women participation in leadership.

2. The potential challenge of limited resources in the program and the fast approaching

elections may mean that the greatest attention in awareness creation be directed to the

existing elective positions, followed by appointive positions that result from the

culmination of elections at both national and county levels. This is not to say an

alternative track of action may not work, but rather the suggested progression may

provide a roadmap towards participatory design of training and advocacy efforts.

3. A women leadership and governance program may consider an emphasis, in the

training concepts, on the notion that increased nominations being indicative of the

failure of the electoral system to support or influence equality. It will be useful to

emphasize the qualitative difference in an electoral system that elects all its

representatives, from one that frequently relies on nominations to achieve gender

balance.


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RECOMMENDATIONS

A set of recommendations can be issued for both Women governance and leadership support

and strengthen women engagement in elective, nominative and appointive positions.

1. Recommendations to CSOs

a) More, and sustained sensitization programmes: With the lack of awareness on the

breadth of positions available for women to engage in leadership, the limited attempts

by women will benefit from increased sensitization on these positions. Women will

benefit from more information and should indeed go for the wide leadership position

in the country if they know which positions exist, and procedures for attaining them.

This is in line with the actions suggested by the 2011 UN resolution on women and

political participation, paragraph 6(d), and the Convention On the Elimination of All

Forms of Discrimination Against Women - CEDAW of 1979.

b) Politics-sensitive awareness creation: programmes tailored to emphasize on the

processes that surround elective politics will be crucial in changing the level of

women participation and representation in in leadership in general, and in the elective

arena in particular. Women want to be elected, in large numbers, but very few are

active in local political party activities, which are the cornerstone for nominations for

elections and other leadership posts. For most CSOs, political engagement is usually

not the go-to activity, but a middle ground has to be found that will not be seen to be

partisan, yet address an obviously political problem of unequal representation and

unconstitutionality. This could be explored through an open and clear engagement of

all women, regardless of political affiliation, with a proactive process that involves

women from various institutions, parties and socio-economic circles. To create

change in a political process requires a political commitment.

c) Similarly, the awareness creation must also address the meaning of the two-thirds

gender principle. A considerable number of respondents suggested a change of the

constitution to make it 50/50, which could be disadvantageous for women in the long-

run, as it would lock them out of greater participation should they reach the threshold.

The awareness should extend to highlighting the existing positions of leadership, who

the current occupants are, and what the requirements for holding such offices are.

This will help in creating greater interest in the future, especially the range of sectors,

departments and structures already having women leaders.

d) Capacity building on leadership skills and knowledge: A clamour for women

increased representation of women in leadership will be the result of demand-driven

programmes, but they must include a supply-side component that builds the capacity

of women to rise to these leadership posts. Nominations have been criticized as

tokenism, but a popular mandate by citizens through the ballot is undisputed.

Nominations will remain a temporary solution, but in the interim, greater capacity


Page | 39

building conducted by civil society organizations will help position women to supply

the needed leadership when opportunity comes.

e) Make men advocates for women leadership: programs targeting women for leadership

are great, but more inclusive programming will actively include men and boys as key

advocates for women in leadership. First, the dominance of men in politics, and the

gendered environment they propagate and thrive in during campaigns must be

targeted for intervention, so that as more women participate in leadership-seeking

processes, men do not become a bottle-neck and limit the potential surge in interest

and participation, either directly by preventing the women from political engagement

and leadership, or indirectly by perpetuating a violent campaign system that affects

women aspirants more than men aspirants. Men don’t see themselves as a big problem

for women to engage in leadership, but women do see them as a key hindrance. More

so, activities that keep men aloof will only maintain the status quo by limit the men’s

role as a potential constituency for women candidates.

2. Recommendations to the county government

a) Actively mainstreaming gender in the county: The different nomination avenues that

exist for appointments to county leadership are an open space for counties to take the

lead in supporting women’s active participation in leadership. Ensuring women are

aware of these positions, their application procedures, and also the dissemination of

this information must take into account the disparity in information gathering and

sharing between men and women. A gender-sensitive lens at county level will trigger

a re-imagination of county engagements to make space for greater women leadership,

which in turn will break the physical and psychological barriers that constrain

women’s interest in leadership.

b) Civic education: the issue of public participation is a cornerstone of devolution, and

counties have, in this process, a direct route to define participation in terms of not just

quantity, but also quality. Actively encouraging the involvement of women with

parity to men will greatly aid in deconstructing the existing stereotypes, and bring

forth the value and credibility of women’s ideas and opinions through such forums as

citizen participation forums. The women who get into leadership are role models to be

leveraged for such activities.

c) Cultural engagement: the role of negative culture emerged as a challenge to women

leadership in both counties, and other problems mentioned also having links to

culture, e.g. the family, men and community, were similarly cited as detrimental.

County Government Programmes that address these cultural dimension will, if done

correctly, add value to the push for greater women participation, and win allies across

generations. That culture is housed with gender and social services in Nyeri county,

while in Meru County gender is in the same department with culture and sports may

present an opportunity for a paired gender and culture program. The historical

patriarchy has had deep effects on what both men and women believe about women in


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leadership, and the same can be harnessed to unhinge the deep-seated cultural

constraints.

d) Role of the County Public Service Board: The CPSBs have powers to establish offices

and appoint people to the public service, as well as promoting values and principles of

the constitution, including the gender principle. Counties should support further the

work of the CPSB, and facilitate, as far as possible, the upholding of the constitution,

including spearheading the discussions on gender in the workplace, especially in the

county service, for a coherent plan that not only acknowledges the role of gender

equity in leadership and county development, but also supports the highest possible

achievement for both men and women in public service.

The public service board should also diversify their information sharing platforms to

increase the access to county announcements on vacant positions and calls for

applications. The use of newspapers and notices at county offices is useful, but misses

a huge section of the population that neither can necessarily afford a newspaper, nor

have a reason to visit the county offices at the same time as a notice is posted.

3. Recommendations to political parties

a) The position and activity of women in political parties is crucial in determining their

further involvement post-elections. The political machinery that is the political party

holds immense sway in how much, how many and how far women engage in

leadership. Their nomination to various positions e.g. leader of majority, leader of

minority, county committees, boards, and others available at the county level, and an

insistence on gender equality in representation through balanced nominations will go

a long way in shaping greater involvement of women in leadership.

b) Political processes at party activity level should consider the gendered experiences

with campaigns, nominations and elections, and strive to advance greater security and

support for women interested in leadership. Parties can strongly advance the

participation of women by advocating for enhanced security measures, and strongly

and jointly condemning any and all violence meted upon any aspirant, especially

women. The dissuasion of violence against women in political processes will

encourage more participation of women in leadership, more so the electoral processes.

c) Whereas financial resources are frequently cited as a hindrance to women engagement

in politics, more women have accessed political leadership positions through

nominations. Political parties therefore stand a better chance of great success by

identifying and supporting potential women leaders with capacity and other required

competencies, as opposed to financial support which few parties have the clout to

accomplish.

d) Specifically, on Financial support, political parties can support an increase in the

number of women aspirants by, at the very least, have parties foot the nomination fees

for interested female aspirants (Ksh. 2,500 for County representatives, 15,000 for the


Page | 41

National assembly, 25,000 for the governor positions, and 100,000 for presidential

aspirants). This will reflect a direct support for greater women participation in the

political sphere of leadership, and encourage more women to offer themselves for

leadership, and address the highly mentioned financial resources issue.

e) A gender audit carried out by political parties after each election cycle may shed light

on the internal processes that hinder or facilitate greater women participation in

leadership in the party political processes. This process can be led by women

members in the party leadership, and involve all decision-makers in the party in

finding bottlenecks to women in leadership. This will pave way for a gender-sensitive

response plan spear-headed by parties, and involving mechanisms to reduce demand

for kitu-kidogo (vote-buying) by the electorate for political support in elections.

f) Women’s wing in parties: Political parties for women can be established to

specifically advance women’s participation in politics and leadership. Such

mechanisms will be avenues for women to be active, engage with, and learn skills

within the parties. Care must be taken though, as sometimes women’s wings may

cause further marginalization and compartmentalization of women under the party.

This can be avoided by linking the wings directly to the parties’ decision-making

bodies, e.g. by assigning a vote in the party’s decisions to the women’s wing.

4. Recommendations to the development partners and community

a) Support and encourage regional and international best practice communication: A few

citizens still struggle with the notion of women in leadership, based on patriarchal

leanings and male-dominated history of leadership. The myths that have encumbered

the prospect of leadership need a multi-pronged approach, including the sharing of

information about countries and regions that have adopted a more inclusive

engagement of women in leadership. From Majority women parliamentarians in

Rwanda and Bolivia, through Belgium with 50% women in the senate, women heads

of governments in over 20 countries, including Liberia’s current president all present

vital case studies of women in leadership. The mapping and communicating of these

cases may contribute greatly to breaking down psychological barriers affecting

women leadership.

b) Resource support for greater women participation: women face multiple challenges in

the quest for equal participation in leadership, including technical capacity,

awareness, and access to information. The development partners should spearhead

different but coordinated support structures to provide a holistic support packet that

will both place women on a better platform and information base for seeking

leadership opportunities, but also educate men as key actors in advancing women’s

leadership in the electoral, nominative and appointive process. Whereas direct

financial assistance to aspirants is against the Election campaign financing guidelines

from the Elections Commission, imparting technical skills in various facets of


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elections, campaigns, leadership and management will greatly strengthen the calibre

of women seeking and engaging in leadership.

c) Leverage national/county government relations: development partners can also engage

the national government as well as the county structures in advocating for the

constitutional principles and values. The same vigour accorded to themes of

corruption, health and economic development could be extended to the area of women

and leadership, and ultimately the upholding of the constitutional principles and

rights.

Ultimately, women participation in leadership will not happen in a vacuum, but rather will

result from being part of an environment where power dynamics shape the boundaries of

what can be done. It will only be through programming that addresses the complex nature of

power and domination politics, that the potential that spaces and women’s participation in

these spaces will be understood, and change initiated to provide a truly equal and

transformative leadership and society.

References

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Federation of Women Lawyers (FIDA) Kenya.

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Institute of Economic Affairs (2015), Implementing the Constitutional Two-Thirds Gender

Principle: The Cost of Representation. The National Women’s Steering Committee

In partnership with Institute of Economic Affairs, May 2015. www.ieakenya.or.ke

Kabira, W. M., & Kimani, E. N. (2012). The historical journey of women's leadership in

Kenya. Journal of Emerging Trends in Educational Research and Policy Studies, 3(6), 842.

Kamau, Nyokabi (2010), Women and Political Leadership in Kenya: Ten Case Studies. 2010,

https://ke.boell.org

O’Neil, T., & Domingo, P. (2016), Women and power: Overcoming barriers to leadership

and influence. Overseas Development Institute (ODI), http://www.odi.org/sites/odi.org.uk

Oliech, I. A., Odoyo, C. O. &Iteyo, C. (2015). Women Participation in Elective Leadership

Positions in Homa-BayTown and Rangwe Constituencies of Homa-Bay County, Kenya.

American Journal of Social Sciences. Vol. 3, No. 2, 2015, pp. 23-32.

Search for Common Ground, (2008), Women of Africa Leadership Development Program:

Combined Research Report: Kenya, Liberia & Côte d’Ivoire.

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United Nations (2012), Resolution 66/130: women and political participation. United Nations

general assembly resolution, 19, December 2011. http://www.un.org

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New York. http://www.un.org/millenniumgoals/

Wales, J. (2016), Women and Power: What can the numbers tell us about women’s voice,

leadership and decision-making? Overseas Development Institute (ODI),

http://www.odi.org/sites/odi.org.uk

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http://www.ieakenya.or.ke/

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https://www.sfcg.org/programmes/lwi/documents/Women_of_Africa_Combined_Report.pdf

http://www.un.org/

http://www.un.org/millenniumgoals/


Annex 1: Terms of Reference

Introduction

The Centre for Rights, Education and Awareness (CREAW) is a non-partisan, non-

governmental women rights organization that works towards a just and free society in which

women and men exercise and enjoy equal and full rights and opportunities. Our Mission is to

transform Kenyan society through the promotion and expansion of women’s human rights,

rule of law and social justice. CREAW believes that social transformation can happen

through a shifting of social norms and practices that curtail the realization of women’s rights.

This is done through legislative and policy advocacy, activism, public education, public

interest litigation and innovative research. The desired change should be evident in attitudes,

knowledge, skills, levels of awareness, behaviour and health at personal, family, communal

and societal levels.

About the Gender and Governance Programme

Gender equality is not only fundamental right but a necessary precursor towards sustainable

development. The absence of women’s voices in key critical decision making spaces

manifests in the poor service delivery for women which stems from local development plans,

budgets and monitoring systems which do not adequately reflect women’s interested and

priorities. In Kenya, the progress towards women’s involvement in politics was initially very

slow. Noticeable changes have only been observed within the last 10 years. Our continuous

contribution to processes and movements that have secured gains for women in the

Constitution have inevitably led to more women occupying decision making spaces at all

levels of governance. In 2013 CREAW successfully supported over 40 women with technical

skills and visibility platforms to enable them launch and manage competitive campaigns

during the electoral period. CREAW’s support contributed to over 20 women ascending to

various elected and nominated positions.

However, statistics shows that women make up 52% of the Kenyan population, but only 63

out of 349 Members of Parliament are elected women. No women were elected as governors

or senators in the 2013 elections and only 88 out of 1,450 seats in county governments are

held by women. This reflects a serious under-representation of women in governance and

decision making structures. The program therefore intends to: strengthen the ability of

women leaders in target counties to effectively contribute to the formulation of gender

responsive policies, legislation and projects; design and implement strategies that support

women leaders to take up appointive, nominated and elected Offices of leadership and

authority; and, influence the development and implementation of laws and policies that create

increased, actual opportunities for women’s participation in leadership and authority.

Purpose

The rapid assessment will focus on the existing c in the counties of Nyeri and Meru. It will

assess the political, community and other leadership structures and networks, and their

potential to support the leadership and governance programme towards the objective of

increasing the number of accountable and gender sensitive women `in political and non-

political decision making spaces in Meru and Nyeri Counties.

Coverage

1. Map key political and non-political decision making spaces in the two counties

2. Local government structures that have low representation of women

3. Gender disaggregated compositions of/in these spaces

4. Processes for access to the spaces

5. Key persons’ assessment of the spaces (prominent political/business/community

women)

6. 2017 landscape: how does it look for women aspirants? Views from

public/private/political/business/ women and men

Qualifications

The consultant to prepare the rapid assessment will work under the supervision of the

Governance Programme Officer, in cooperation with the relevant units at the CREAW

headquarters.

S/he should meet the following qualifications:

Expertise in conducting assessments and evaluation and related methodologies

including data collection and analysis

Knowledge of the women and governance arena in Kenya

Experience in development projects covering both governments and civil society,

preferably in East Africa

Excellent Written verbal and communication skills.

Experience writing high quality evaluation reports

Fluency in English, and Swahili will be an added advantage.

Timeline

The rapid assessment assignment is expected to run for a maximum of 5 days.

women leadership and governance in meru and nyeri counties

Documents