MGCSD Gender Policy 2011

The vision of the Ministry is “A society where women, men, children and persons with disabilities enjoy equal rights, opportunities and a high quality of life.”6 The Ministry firmly believes that women, men, girls and boys are actors in and beneficiaries of development. Through this policy, the Ministry seeks to deepen its work around understanding power relations and its dynamics so as to ultimately dismantle practices, institutions and structures that sustain inequality. Therefore this policy is intended to guide the Ministry in its work of leading positive transformations around the social order with a view of having equity, equality and full enjoyment of human rights for all.

In adopting the gender mainstreaming strategy, the Ministry is keenly aware that this strategy is utilized to bring deliberate attention on how women, men, girls and boys are ‘reached’, ‘influenced’, ‘affected’ and ‘involved’. Since research and experience confirm the importance of gender equality, not only as a fundamental human right, but also as essential to poverty reduction and improved living standards, sustainable economic growth, and effective and accountable governance. The Ministry notes that despite women’s essential productive and reproductive roles, they still have significantly less access than men to resources, assets, knowledge and community management and decision-making. Gender equality is crucial for socio economic development as well as the attainment of the Millennium Development Goals. From an economic efficiency lens, the Ministry is well aware that where gender inequalities in access and control over resources are persistent, they undermine sustainable and inclusive development. The framework for expansion has been the Kenya Vision 2030 and the Medium Term Plan (MTP), which has focused on rapid growth with macroeconomic stability, rehabilitation and expansion of infrastructure, investment in human capital, strengthening institutions of governance and revitalizing productive sectors. One of the key ways to mainstream gender in any organization is by formulating a Gender Policy.