Tackle education barriers to empower girl child, Government urged

Access to education for the girl child is considered a crucial step toward achieving gender equality while transforming individuals and communities. Stakeholders advocating for women’s empowerment have emphasized that women in leadership play a fundamental role in this noble agenda.

According to Ms. Victoria Shappard, a co-founder of the Canada Mathare Education Trust (CMETrust), a just society can only be realized if women are involved in leadership. She points out that many challenges faced by countries worldwide stem from the disregard for women’s leadership abilities.

“We should inspire women and girls to be more confident and break barriers to education by increasing academic opportunities, providing basic life skills training, and offering educational support for marginalized young women, especially those in low-income areas,” she noted.

The community-based organization has been bridging the educational gaps for girls in Mathare Slum, with over 200 girls benefiting from secondary school scholarships since 2006.

Esther Njenga, a Programs Manager at CMETrust, stated that the organization is driven by a desire to confront the prevailing gender inequalities in society, which are cited as the main obstacles to girls accessing educational opportunities.

“We are on a mission to inspire scholars to pursue leadership roles and engage in male-dominated spaces while challenging inequalities within their communities and households, and gaining practical skills for daily life,” she said during a forum titled Women in Leadership, organized by CMETrust.

These efforts aim to contribute to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) for gender equality, education, and partnerships, aligning with Canada’s Feminist International Assistance Policy (FIAP), which advocates for action to eradicate poverty worldwide and promote gender equality and empowerment for girls and women.

According to the National Gender and Equality Commission (NGEC), women constitute half of the population and are indispensable contributors to economic, social, and political development. However, women encounter multifaceted barriers that hinder their full participation.

These challenges, ranging from deep-seated cultural norms and discriminatory practices to limited access to resources, perpetuate gender disparities. The World Economic Forum’s Global Gender Gap Report 2023 indicates that Kenya ranks 77 out of 153 countries regarding gender equality.

The report shows that women still lag on many fronts, including economic participation and opportunity, educational attainment, health and survival, and political empowerment. Furthermore, gender-based violence (GBV) continues to inhibit women and girls from operating optimally in various fields.

“Women and girls, especially those from slum areas, are disadvantaged on many fronts. There are few schools and limited resources available to them. Girls in these environments lack relatable role models. We want to connect them to opportunities,” observes Njenga.

Speaking during the same forum, Nominated Senator Crystal Asige noted that young women with disabilities face multiple burdens of discrimination. “Studies show that this special group is four times more likely to suffer gender-based violence, three times more prone to lack of healthcare services, three times more likely to be illiterate, two times more likely to be unemployed, and two times less likely to access the internet,” she reveals.

She states that women are disproportionately uneducated, unemployed, exploited, and abused, exposing them to more challenges than men. As a result, she urges women to make informed decisions that will not jeopardize their future.

To address the issue of gender-based violence, which disproportionately affects women, Ms. Shappard has called on the government to invest in girls at an early age so they can develop the capacity to avoid risky situations. She emphasizes that the mental distress resulting from gender-based violence leads to further social and societal misery.

Her call comes as a 16-day campaign against gender-based violence is ongoing, with stakeholders advocating for the establishment of proper legislative frameworks to hold perpetrators of gender-based violence and femicide accountable.

According to a 2022 report from the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (KNBS), over 40% of women between the ages of 15 and 49 have experienced some form of physical violence, while 14% have been subjected to sexual violence. These figures, however, are likely underreported due to the stigma and fear surrounding gender-based violence.

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