In Kenya, just as in most African countries, GBV disproportionately affects more women than men. Indeed, government statistics from the Kenya Demographic and Health Survey (KDHS) indicate that over 40 percent of women have experienced physical or sexual intimate partner violence in their lifetime.
Speaking particularly about Nairobi, the County’s Woman Representative Esther Passaris underscored some of the efforts already put in place to fight this demeaning vice.
Hon Esther Passaris says:
“As Nairobi Woman Rep, when I became the member of parliament, it came to my realisation that we talk about the gender desk, and the police we have to commend them for coming up with police units where you can go and file your report in privacy, but there was not enough facilities in our stations so one of the first things that we did as Nairobi is to get a project going for seventeen police stations to have SGBV units and we are actually ready to commission nine of them. We also decided to put up safe spaces, the safe house. Now the safe house had a lot of challenges we kept on saving our money we knew it was something we have put in the capital city as a model for the entire country as well as the continent as a whole because sexual gender based violence is not just unique to one county, or one. country, we are looking globally with the vision our President has not just for Kenya but for the continent as a whole.
So I’m happy to report that we have partnered with Nairobi County, under the leadership of Ann Kananu when she was Governor we were able to secure a parcel of land and in that land we are putting up the first Nairobi’s first Government owned GBV safe space and we shall hopefully launch that in the next six months or so.”
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