This archive report was first published on 5 January 2020.
On January 5, 2020, a report by the World Economic Forum revealed that Kenya lagged behind its global peers in gender equity, ranking 109 out of 153 countries with a score of 0.671 out of 10.
Despite having a Constitution that requires at least 30 percent representation of either gender in the public sphere, Kenya has consistently fallen short of this requirement.
The private sector also has a long way to go, with a 2017 report by the Kenya Institute of Management showing that only five women headed boards among firms listed on the Nairobi bourse.
The percentage of women in the civil service and politics in the country is also below the constitutional requirement of two-thirds threshold.
However, there is a growing recognition of the importance of gender equity, and corporate leaders in Kenya have decried the 23 percent overall representation of women on boards.
To meet global standards on gender representation, there must be a total overhaul of the current mindset, starting with respecting the tenets of the Constitution and ensuring that all government agencies meet the quota set by the law.
