FEMALE
REPRESENTATION
Parties Act, 2008, has been instrumental in the emancipation of women in political spheres. There is now in place a system that ensures closer scrutiny of the activities of political parties. The act also requires that parties have in their executive arms at least 30 per cent representation by women. The full impact of the act may not have been witnessed yet since it only came into operation recently.
Voting systems and quotas The general electoral system too needs to be reviewed in order to enhance its capacity to accommodate female candidates. The type of electoral system a country has plays an important part in women's political representation, especially in the developed world. Most argue that proportional representation systems are better suited than majoritarian systems to increasing women's representation. The district system has been shown to increase women’s share of parliamentary seats by nearly 12 per cent when compared to a candidate-centred, single-Member district system.
Another option is the use of quotas and reserved seats which is a common approach to protect the interests of marginalized and minority communities. In Kenya, women fall in such groups. Among the most affluent longstanding democracies, the United States has one of the smallest proportions of female legislators because none of the positive steps for women such as quotas in political parties, reserved seats in Congress and woman- friendly electoral systems exist there.
Scandinavian countries are
exemplary in bringing more women in Parliament by using quotas in political parties. The rise in the numbers of female legislators in several Scandinavian countries is a consequence of political parties adopting formal quota systems which ensure at least 40 per cent
female representation on party lists.
Argentina’s Ley de Cupos (Law of Quotas) is an example of a national law requiring all political parties to adopt a minimum quota (30 per cent) on party lists for women in the election of national Deputies. In Kenya, the current draft constitution has proposed the reservation of 47 special seats for women in the National Assembly and 16 women Members, nominated by political parties, in the Senate.
“Empowering women is empowering the household, the community and the society.”
Successful role models Rosemary O’Grady, an Australian lawyer and book reviewer, once said: 2Because women's liberation is a movement of the powerless for the powerless, its attraction is not immediately clear to the powerless, who feel they need alliance with the powerful to survive.” This probably explains why in Kenya it has taken just a handful of pragmatic Kenyan women to initiate a gradual change in women’s mentality about the place of women in political leadership. Notable women Parliamentarians in this context include the likes of Njoki Ndungu, Jebii Kilimo, Marth Karua and Charity Ngilu among others. The few women Members of
Parliament have in their own way demonstrated through good performance that women have great potential in leadership. Against all odds in a dominantly male Parliament, they have been able to make their presence and
22 | The Parliamentarian | 2010: Issue Three - Kenya
influence felt. They have risen above gender prejudice to see through some of the most progressive laws in our time, the Sexual Offences Act and the Children Act among others. A number of them have not shied away from making the voices of woman heard in the call for reforms.
Great impression too has been made by women who have defied all stereotypes and gunned for top political leadership including the presidency.
Gender policy progress The Kenyan government has made some progress towards addressing women’s rights. A number of policies and key national plans have been formulated that address critical areas of concern such as education, violence against women, decision-making, economy, health and employment. Examples can be seen in:
• Engendering public expenditure;
• The establishment of the Women’s Enterprise Fund (WEF) to facilitate women’s access to credit and empower them economically;
• Establishment of the Social
Protection Fund to support vulnerable and poor women;
• Implementation of the presidential decree, in October 2006, that required 30 per cent of all appointments, recruitments and promotion in the Public Service to be reserved for women;
• Development of a specific Gender and Education Policy in 2007 to provide a framework for the
implementation of gender- responsive education which has contributed to an increase of girls in universities and in specific courses, and
• Establishment of the National Commission on Gender and Development.
It is now a requirement for all government ministries and parastatals to include gender mainstreaming initiatives in their performance contracts. There is a shift from line budgeting to programme budgeting providing for the financing of specific programmes/projects. This has enabled the government to track budgetary allocations that target gender equality and women’s empowerment.
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52