Wajir Peace and Development Agency (WPDA)
Wajir peace and development agency (wpda)
Gender Equality
Violence against women and girls (VAWG) continues to be one of the most pervasive human rights violations facing women and girls in Kenya with national statistics indicating that 45% of women aged 15-49 have experienced physical violence since age 15 and that the main perpetrators of physical violence against women are their husbands. WPDA has been vocal and supporting justice interventions, structured dialogues and advocacy solutions that tackle root causes of Violence against women and girls (VAWG) as well as VAWG prevalence and manifestation.
Despite comprising 60% of the population, women in Wajir County remain marginalized in public leadership. Since Kenya gained independence in 1963, Wajir County, currently made up of 6 constituencies and 29 wards has never had a woman elected in parliament or in the local government. It was only in 2022 General Elections that one woman was elected as a member of County Assembly to represent a ward. Generally, in the County, women are seen as trespassers in leadership and their rights to participate in public decision making are trampled upon by entrenched clan and religious forces
The aspirations of promoting women leadership in public domain and eliminating discrimination ties with WPDA’s programme goals of increasing opportunities for enhanced democratization, freedom of expression and reduction of various forms of discrimination for women and girls. WPDA acts as catalyst to motivate women to compete for elective positions in key institutions of governance.
WPDA approach has been-
- Enhancing accountability mechanisms and women’s ability to participate in and influence governance systems and structures at national and county level
- Strengthening the capacity of women to participate in and influence peace and security processes
- Increasing citizen civic understanding and advocacy on women’s rights to participate in governance processes
- Building trust and accountability between the security services, referral agencies, and community to increase reporting of VAWG.
- Integrating issues of VAWG into legislation and policy frameworks across northern Kenyan counties.
- Localizing the national legislation and scaling-up capacity building for stakeholders, including county-based gender technical working groups.
- Strengthening referral-chains and advocacy pathways for greater access to justice for survivors.
- Strengthening the capacities of national and county institutions to develop and implement gender-responsive Climate Smart Agriculture (CSA) policies