Kenya's response to gender violence: a plan for women's protection

The Kenyan government announced on Thursday that gender-based violence is the biggest security issue in the country.

In just four months, 100 women have been killed, mostly by men they knew, including partners.

Prime Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi called this growing problem “the elephant in the room” and noted that many cases are still under investigation in court.

Since September 2023, there have been 7,107 reports of sexual and gender-based violence in Kenya.

Mudavadi mentioned that the police have created a special unit to address femicides, which are killings based on gender.

Human rights groups are protesting for justice as Kenya faces this hidden crisis.

A U.N. report from November highlighted that Africa had the highest rate of partner-related femicide in 2023.

President William Ruto has urged police to look into these cases, stating that four out of five murdered women were victims of intimate partner violence, meaning they are unsafe in their own homes.

This week, Kenya’s Cabinet approved a presidential group to suggest ways to combat gender-based violence.