By Dennis Gichuiri
Women leaders and gender equality advocates gathered on Saturday to celebrate outstanding women making an impact across different sectors, while also calling for accelerated efforts towards achieving gender equality in Kenya.
Speaking during the event, Dr. Purity Ngina, the Chief Executive Officer of the National Gender and Equality Commission, described the occasion as both celebratory and reflective, noting that although Kenya has made progress in empowering women since the promulgation of the 2010 Constitution, significant gaps still remain.
“Today is a very exciting event for women because most of us are here to congratulate and celebrate women receiving awards for the amazing things they are doing in this country,” she said.
Dr. Ngina noted that despite increased visibility of women in leadership positions, including governors, Members of Parliament, and leaders in public institutions, the country is yet to fully achieve the constitutional gender threshold.
“We still have a big gap because we have not met the two-thirds gender rule as provided for in the Constitution. It is a mix of emotions because while we celebrate those who have achieved, we also ask ourselves how many more years it will take for us to fully realize the constitutional aspirations on gender equality,” she added.
She, however, expressed optimism that continued empowerment programmes and recognition initiatives would inspire more women to take up leadership positions and create greater impact in society.
Also speaking at the event, Bernard Simanto said the celebration coincided with Mother’s Day celebrations, emphasizing the important nurturing role women continue to play in society.
“Mother’s Day is a moment where we celebrate people who nurture others, whether it is their own children or not. Our country needs more people willing to support and nurture society,” he said.
Simanto also highlighted the need to address persistent challenges affecting women, including gender-based violence, female genital mutilation (FGM), and femicide.
He referenced the technical working group formed by President William Ruto to tackle gender-based violence and femicide, expressing hope that recommendations already submitted to Cabinet would soon be implemented.
“We are hoping the recommendations will now move into implementation so that we push the needle forward instead of remaining with reports and documents,” he stated.
The IKWA CEO said the event was also aimed at celebrating women leaders from different sectors for their contribution to society and nation-building.
“We believe our women, sisters, and mothers are doing a good job and that is why we are here to celebrate them,” he said.
The leaders further called on Kenyans to continue supporting efforts aimed at expanding women’s participation in leadership, strengthening healthcare systems, and promoting equality across all sectors.
