A Ford Foundation Grant to Support Participation of Women and Girls with Disabilities in Leadership and Governance


In Kenya, a gap continues to exist within the leadership and governance space for women and girls with disabilities. According to the Kenya 2019 census, 2.2% (0.9 million people) of Kenyans have some form of disability, with a majority being women with disabilities at 2.5% (523,184) and 1.9% (393,451) of men with disabilities. Further, there is evidence to show that women with disabilities are underrepresented in many spheres of life, including within leadership and governance. 

Kenya has just come out of an election and the concern has been raised of the lack of representation across board, more so the representation of persons with disabilities. Whereas the election outcome indicates a slight improvement in the numbers of women elected in various seats, notably, none of the elected women in the National Assembly and Governors are women with disabilities.

In addition, the nomination of persons with disabilities across the country was similarly disappointing, with over 21 counties lacking representation of persons with disabilities. It is indicative of the general narrative under which a lack of representation signals a lack of commitment to the full inclusion and participation of persons with disabilities in general, and women with disabilities in particular.

This not only negates Constitutional requirements that at least five percent of the members of the public in elective and appointive bodies are persons with disabilities, but it also results in governance gaps and policy spaces that are non-responsive to needs of persons with disabilities in general, as well as needs of women with disabilities in particular.

Kenya’s national values and principles as espoused in the Constitution, include principles of equity, social justice and inclusiveness. It is also true that when persons with disabilities participate in leadership spaces and public life, their voice is heard and reflected in policy decisions. 

The Network is thus really glad to have received a two year grant from the Ford Foundation; to consider the above gaps that exist within leadership and governance spaces for women and girls with disabilities. There is an urgent need to make space for ourselves, as women and girls with disabilities, on the national stage while also building the critical mass within our constituencies to take up this space.

Through the project, the Network shall engage with three constituents across four counties of Mombasa, Kisumu, Kakamega, and Nairobi including women with disabilities particularly those in leadership positions and public office, organisations of persons with disabilities organising around women and girls with disabilities as well as mainstream women's rights and feminist organisations.

The Network members are really excited about the coming days where our hope is to see more representation and advocacy for the rights of girls and women with disabilities in various spaces. We are also hopeful to see a disability activism space that is built around an understanding of the need for more concerted efforts by women with disabilities in the leadership and governance spaces. We would also like to see an inclusive activism space across different rights issues which would translate into mainstream organisations actively supporting disability activism within their programming changing the narrative on the leadership capability of girls and women with disabilities.


Write to us, partner with us, and let us create a society that is fully inclusive of all women and girls with disabilities: Email: advocacynetworkkenya@gmail.com and Follow us on twitter: @Kwwdnetwork .

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

My JOURNEY:WOMEN WITH DISABILITY IN LEADERSHIP

Image
As the Kenya Network of Women and Girls with Disabilities continues to amplify the experiences of women and girls with disabilities within leadership and governance spaces, through support from the  Ford Foundation ,the Network has embarked on a campaign that seeks to showcase the experiences of 40 women and girls with disabilities from across four counties namely Kakamega, Kisumu, Nairobi, and Mombasa in Kenya. The leadership journey is not without its struggles.It can get more difficult for women and girls with disabilities who often have to navigate different barriers within their environments. Leadership experiences are not limited to certain spaces.Our women with disabilities are therefore in leadership and different spaces.They are in political leadership;they are village ward administrators, they are activists and champion the rights of women and girls with disabilities in different spaces. What common characteristics do they have? They are women with disabilities who are bother
Read more

16 Days of Activism: Women with Disabilities against Gender Based Violence

Image
As Kenya Network of Women and Girls with Disabilities,we join the globe to mark 16 Days of Activism Against Gender Based Violence(GBV).We are #UnitedtoEndGBV and put emphasis on #WomenwithDisabilitiesAgainstGBV. We join together with partners across the Women Gaining Ground Consortium through CREA   in making a collective call to find inclusive approaches of preventing and eliminating gender based violence against women and girls, including those whose voices continue to remain at the margins, such as women and girls with disabilities. We recognise that GBV experiences have similarities across our diversities as women and girls. We also acknowledge the different experiences across these diversities including those of women and girls with disabilities. Recently, the United Nations Independent Expert on Protection Against Violence and Discrimination Based on Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity, and the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, re
Read more

‘There is No perfect moment to be a Leader...do it everyday’

Image
As a Network, we continue exploring different ways to advance disability inclusion. We endeavor to keep playing a part to ensure that our communities are more inclusive and more accessible to persons with disabilities. Importantly, to support women and girls with disabilities to exercise leadership in their everyday life. One of the activities that we have recently conducted through the support of the Ford Foundation is holding Strategic Dialogues with Youths with Disabilities from different Higher Learning Institutions to reflect through leadership and what it means to them; barriers to their inclusion in their communities and collectively reflecting on solutions to challenges that they face. We brought together 20 young people with disabilities from 10   higher learning  institutions such as the University of Nairobi, Mt. Kenya University, Tangaza University, Thika Technical Institute, Kenya Institute of Special Education, Kenyatta University, NITA (National Industrial Training Autho
Read more