Gender and Public Service Cabinet Secretary, Aisha Jumwa, has decried the unavailability of data on gender programmes and investment across the country.
Speaking Thursday morning during the first bi-annual national gender sector working group meeting in Nairobi, CS Jumwa said there is a need for a one-stop shop on Gender Data to get a view of what is happening across the country on gender equality.
She said the move will provide real-time data on the mapping of Gender Equality initiatives in the country which is useful information to inform policy and decision-making and to guide targetted interventions by the government and development partners.
“We need one-stop shop on Gender Data, which can provide real time data on the mapping of Gender Equality initiatives in the country, county based indicating the actors, geographical coverage and development partners investments,” she said.
Adding “And we can add on other variables. This will help us at glance to get a view of what is happening across the country on Gender Equality, which is useful information to inform policy and decision making”.
Jumwa affirmed the government’s commitment to advancing gender equality and the empowerment of women and girls.
According to the World Economic Forum Gender Data, Kenya has made a significant leap in the Gender Development Index, moving from position 118 in 2018 to an impressive position 56 in 2022 globally.
From the last Gender Sector Working Group held on 20th July 2022, the government has made significant positive changes in a number of areas including women leadership.
For instance, for elected women in National Assembly, we have 29 from 23, from 3 Governors to now 7, from 97 to 115 at the County Assemblies.
Sound progress she said has been made in promoting positive social norms, attitudes and behaviours that prevent Gender Based Violence.
“This is evidenced in the Kenya Demographic Health Survey 2023, which indicated some decrease for women and girls age 15- 49. From 20% to 16% for physical violence, 7.6% to 6.42% for sexual violence, 21% to 15 % for FGM just to mention but a few. However, let me quickly add that the challenges remain and our work is far from over” Jumwa stated.
