Monday, July 12, 2021


UoN, KNBS, UN Women, State Departmentment of Gender and researchers
representatives at the launch of the Gender-data manuscript 

16 Post-Graduate Research Papers on Women’s Empowerment, Health, and Gender-Based Violence provide evidence for Gender equality Policies in Kenya. The research papers are an important step in supporting evidence-based policies by addressing the disconnect between researchers and policymakers.

 

On Friday, July 9,2021, The collaborators; UoN, Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (KNBS), the State Department for Gender (SDfG), the National Gender and Equality Commission (NGEC), and UN Women gathered at the launch of the manuscript of the research findings . The  16 master’s research papers from University of Nairobi (UoN)  have been converted into policy documents in an effort to bridge gaps in data availability and analytical rigour in order to support evidence-based gender equality policies in Kenya.

 

Speaking during the launch of Gender Statistics for Evidence-Based Policies: Women’s Economic Empowerment, Health, and Gender-Based Violence,  the UoN Vice Chancellor Prof. Stephen Kiama said “University of Nairobi takes great pride in its role in interpreting our highly technical work into simple yet impactful communication that resonates with diverse users.  The Vice Chancellor added that UoN  will continue to create awareness of development challenges  while at the same time providing solutions through  innovative research.

He was represented by Prof. Enos Njeru, the then Deputy Vice-Chancellor, Human Resource and Administration.

The students’ grant program aims to build capacity for gender statistics research as well as increase the pool of gender statisticians in Kenya while disseminating the  findings to a wide audience in efforts to influence evidence-based policy and decision-making on matters pertaining gender equality and women’s economic empowerment.

 

“This collaboration demonstrates the synergies gained when data producers, users and policymakers work together to collect, analyze and decipher policy messages from gender statistics,” said Anna Mutavati, UN Women Kenya Representative.

 

The research compendium in the form of a book has research findings in the area of women’s economic empowerment, Women’s reproductive health and Gender based violence.

 

Key findings show that women earn less than men even for equal work.  Other findings indicate that much as the financial access gap has narrowed, women are still likely to have lesser access to formal financial services and as a result women are more likely than men to borrow from credit sources that may impact negatively on their financial health.

 

In the area of Women’s reproductive health, results from the book show that one in every five adolescents in Kenya has had a repeat pregnancy with the probability of a repeat adolescent pregnancy declining with higher levels of education and increasing with higher poverty levels.

 

 

Other findings show that contraceptive use is higher where the husband/partner makes contraceptive decisions alone or jointly between spouses/partners compared to where women make contraceptive decisions alone. Other results from the book indicate  that women who are involved in key household decision-making are more likely to use modern family planning methods than those who are not.

 

On the issue of gender-based violence, results show that sexual violence has been on the rise over the years, with women being the most affected.

 

“In most cases, the media, and lately social media, is left to decide, manage, opine, and disseminate information on this sensitive subject,” said Ms. Verity Mganga, Ag. Director for Policy and Research at SDfG.

 

Research findings on sexual violence also show that 76% of victims   who sought help did so through informal channels, while another 53% neither disclosed the violation nor sought help; another 10% of the victims disclosed the violation but did not seek help. Fear of repercussions, shame, stigma, and a feeling of helplessness were identified as hindering women victims’ decision to report sexual violence. Less educated women were also found to be less likely to report sexual violence against them.