Time to work on the gains made in election of women leaders is now
We have to put in a lot of work to have more women elected into those spaces and, hopefully, achieve the elusive two-thirds gender constitutional requirement, through elections.
With the 2022 General Election done and dusted, and having produced an unprecedented number of elected women leaders, it is time to roll up the sleeves and work towards even more numbers in the next elections, in five years.
We have to put in a lot of work to have more women elected into those spaces and, hopefully, achieve the elusive two-thirds gender constitutional requirement, through elections. The August 9 polls saw seven women governors elected: The re-elected Kirinyaga Governor Anne Waiguru, Susan Kihika (Nakuru), Gladys Wanga (Homa Bay), Wavinya Ndeti (Machakos), Kawira Mwangaza (Meru), Cecily Mbarire (Embu) and Fatuma Achani (Kwale).
Other elected women include: 29 Members of the National Assembly, three senators— Fatuma Adan Dullo (Isiolo), Tabitha Karanja (Nakuru) and Agnes Kavindu Muthama (Machakos)—47 Woman Representatives and 100 Members of the County Assembly. Another 18 will be nominated by parties to the Senate with others expected among the 12 nominees to the National Assembly.
Going by the amount of sensitisation of the voter and empowerment of, especially, female aspirants by various interest groups, the nation will get there insofar as electing women to top political positions, including the presidency, cultural stereotyping and other usual barriers notwithstanding.
Fulfil its pledge
The incoming Kenya Kwanza Alliance administration is, without a doubt, expected to fulfil its pledge to the nation to obey the Constitution and implement the two-thirds gender rule. The promise is well captured in their Women’s Charter, signed on June 10, 2022 complete with a timeline and its election manifesto. All the new government need provide is the political goodwill that has been absent over the years in Parliament.
Political parties’ leadership, particularly the opposition, in both Houses must lead and rally their membership around the gender rule. The implementation of the constitutional requirement is not about women but good governance, equity, fairness and gender balance in political leadership. It is time Kenyans reflected on the face of the nation and society.
Women county bosses
The election of seven women county bosses is an inspiration to Kenyans to elect even more. Hopes are high in those counties that the new governors will sweep the devolved units cleaner and perform exceptionally well, especially on matters such as health and its infrastructure, which has largely remained a touchy issue in a number of them.
The hope that the newly elected female leaders will be outstanding in their performance is not from vacuity. Most women leaders who were afforded a chance by their political parties through affirmative action in Parliament have done tremendously well. They include MPs Martha Wangari, (Gilgil), Millie Odhiambo (Suba North), Naisula Lesuuda (Samburu West) and Beatrice Elachi (Dagoretti North); Woman Reps Liza Chelule (Nakuru) and Rev Naomi Waqo (Marsabit); Senator Dullo and Governor Mbarire. Having started their political careers as either nominated senator or MP, they went on to contest elective seats and now thrive in their positions.
For more elected women, advocates for gender equity, women’s rights organisations, the civil society in general and even the media sector will need to be intentional in the continuation of the objective and related emerging issues. That means isolating and pinpointing some of the most critical barriers and hurdles to women’s participating in elections and zooming in on them in sensitisation and empowerment of communities. Ahead of the elections, some organisations were outstanding. Now see the fruits!
Barriers and obstacles
The UN Women in Kenya, for instance, was exceptional in identifying some of the barriers and obstacles that hinder women from contesting political offices. Consequently, it rallied stakeholders and interested parties around those issues to seek solutions ahead of the elections. Key among them was violence targeted at women aspirants—physical, emotional and threats that include sexual attacks— that is all common during elections. They put in place programmes to deal with blockades such as violence—used systematically to stop women from getting power—and clear the path for more to contest.
The most outstanding of these is the Women in Leadership Programme in Kenya, whose objective is to increase women’s representation in political leadership, particularly through training. As the UN Women Country Representative, Anna Mutavati, rightly states, “through fast-tracked, equal power-sharing, women and men can collectively solve the urgent challenges of our time”.
Ms Rugene is a consulting editor and founder, the Woman’s Newsroom Foundation. [email protected]. @nrugene
