This archive report was first published on 22 July 2019.
On July 22, 2019, the Court of Appeal made a landmark ruling in favor of Audrey Mbugua, Kenya's first transgender woman.
The court directed the Kenya National Examinations Council (KNEC) to effect changes on Ms. Mbugua's academic certificates to indicate her chosen gender.
Ms. Mbugua had renounced her male identity in 2012 through a gazette notice, and a psychiatric evaluation revealed that she suffers from Gender Identity Disorder.
Dr. Catherine Syengo Mutisya, deputy medical superintendent at Mathari Hospital, testified that Ms. Mbugua's medical transition to a woman has progressed.
KNEC had challenged a decision by the High Court, which found in favor of Ms. Mbugua, but the Court of Appeal upheld the decision, stating, "All in all, we are not persuaded that the appellant has established a basis for this court to interfere with the decision of the lower court."
