One in three men report sexual harassment at work, new survey finds
A woman reacts as a male colleague places a hand on her shoulder, reflecting findings that more than half of workers surveyed across four African countries have experienced sexual harassment at work, with women most affected.
What you need to know:
- More than half of workers surveyed across four African countries say they have experienced sexual harassment at work.
- Women are most affected, though a significant number of men also report similar experiences.
- Despite legal protections and new initiatives, many cases remain unreported due to fear and weak enforcement.
The workplace is the most dangerous place for sexual harassment in Africa, with more than half of workers surveyed across Kenya, Nigeria, South Africa and Egypt saying they have experienced it there, and women bearing the heaviest burden by far.
That is the central finding of a new Gender Equality Report by GeoPoll, which surveyed the four countries and found that 51 per cent of respondents had experienced workplace sexual harassment, a gender gap of 25 percentage points that the report identifies as one of the most pronounced divides in the entire survey.
Six in 10 women, 59 per cent, reported personal experience of workplace sexual harassment, compared to 35 per cent of men. Across all settings, nearly half of all respondents, 47 per cent, said they had personally experienced some form of sexual harassment, from unwanted verbal comments and gestures to physical contact, with serious consequences for victims' mental health, productivity and sense of safety.
"Women are not only more likely to be targeted, but the scale of that targeting is severe, as a majority of female respondents across all four countries have personally encountered unwanted sexual conduct at some point in their lives," the report states.
The findings also push back against the assumption that sexual harassment is exclusively a women's issue.
"For men, while the figure is lower, one in three having experienced harassment is itself a significant finding," the survey adds.
Underreporting remains one of the biggest barriers to addressing the problem. Research on African media organisations found that while one in two women experienced workplace sexual harassment, only 30 per cent of cases were ever reported, with women citing fear of retaliation and a lack of confidence that their organisations would take meaningful action.
Lawyer sacked
The complexity of the issue was illustrated in a Nairobi case last year, when the Employment and Labour Relations Court declared the dismissal of a lawyer by civil society organisation Kituo cha Sheria unlawful and ordered the organisation to pay her Sh1.5 million. The lawyer had been sacked after a male employee complained of sexual harassment, alleging she had referred to him as "baby boy" and "boy lollipop" without his consent.
Justice Byram Ongaya ruled that the allegations were either fabricated or had been welcomed by the complainant, noting that the man had raised no objection over 18 months. The same nicknames had featured on his birthday cake, prepared by colleagues, and in casual WhatsApp conversations without a word of protest from him.
"The allegations were malicious, unfounded, and did not occur. And if they did, the man tolerated them, given his prolonged failure to raise any objection," Justice Ongaya observed. The court also found that Kituo cha Sheria had denied the lawyer the right to defend herself and had failed to submit a conclusive report from the ad hoc committee formed to investigate the allegations.
In Kenya, sexual harassment is prohibited under several legal frameworks, including the Constitution of Kenya 2010, the Employment Act 2007, the Labour Relations Act 2007, the Sexual Offences Act 2006 and the National Employment Policy, all of which require employers to take preventive and remedial action.
Several initiatives are now underway to strengthen enforcement. Labour Cabinet Secretary Dr Alfred Mutua has said the government is introducing new policies and specialised units to tackle workplace sexual harassment, and in February 2026, Chief Justice Martha Koome led the launch of the Employee Protection Unit and the Gender, Inclusion, and Diversity Unit to combat harassment and ensure accountability.
The Employment (Amendment) Bill 2025, currently under review, proposes to make it mandatory for employers to have internal reporting systems, with penalties for those who fail to comply. The government is also in the process of ratifying ILO Convention 190, which recognises the right of everyone to a world of work free from violence and harassment.
Last year, the International Finance Corporation (IFC) launched two initiatives, the Gender-Based Violence Centre of Expertise and the Respect@Work Program, to address gender-based violence and harassment in Kenyan workplaces.
The Respect@Work Program is part of IFC's Kenya2Equal Initiative, developed in partnership with the Federation of Kenya Employers, and provides companies with a peer-learning platform to implement safer workplace strategies.
"Gender-based violence and harassment is not just a personal issue; it is a workplace issue, and one that demands urgent and collective action," said Gillian Rogers, IFC's Principal Country Officer in Kenya.
"IFC is committed to partnering with the private sector, offering evidence-based solutions and sharing practical experiences to create work environments where every worker feels safe, valued, and empowered."
