International Development Law Organization

Striving towards Gender Equality in Kenya

IDLO, in conjunction with the Kenyan government, has launched a Gender Management System (GMS) training manual and guide, aimed at increasing knowledge and institutional capacity on gender-related concepts and issues.

In the manual’s foreword, Anne Waiguru, Cabinet Secretary for Devolution and Planning, writes that the Ministry ‘recognizes and appreciates that gender mainstreaming is key in ensuring that policy and decision-making processes take into account men and women’s unique interests, concerns and needs.’

Speaking at the launch of the manual in Nairobi, IDLO Country Director Enid Muthoni said the Organization looked forward to close cooperation with the Kenyan authorities on the matter. ‘IDLO’s gender work,’ she said, ‘combines bottom-up and locally-owned legal and socio-economic empowerment approaches with top-down reforms. [This is] to ensure that domestic laws and regulations, as well as administrative policies and practices, are in line with international legal standards on gender equality and human rights.’

The GMS is an approach to mainstreaming gender developed by the Commonwealth Secretariat. It is defined as a set of structures, mechanisms and processes to ensure that gender considerations are integrated into all government policies, programs and activities.

Gender Management System Training Manual