SPEECH BY H.E.

MARGARET KENYATTA, THE FIRST LADY OF THE

REPUBLIC

OF

KENYA,

DURING

THE

6TH

CONFERENCE

OF

COMMONWEALTH WOMEN PARLIAMENTARIANS ON FRIDAY, 7TH

AUGUST 2015, AT THE SAFARI PARK HOTEL, NAIROBI
Speakers of Parliament,
Members of Parliament,
Distinguished Guests,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
On behalf of the Government and the people of Kenya, I am pleased to
welcome each one of you to the 6th Conference of Commonwealth
Women Parliamentarians.
As a country, we are delighted to host you and we will do all that we can to
ensure that you enjoy your stay with us.
This conference is indeed timely, as it is happening during a period when
new global development goals are being crafted for the post-2015 era.
It is therefore prudent that we ensure that this process fully encompasses
the voice of women from across the entire Commonwealth.
It is my sincere hope and prayer that this conference will grant us the
opportunity to formulate strategic ways to ensure women participate in
bringing about economic growth and greater gender equality.

Page | 1

Globally, great and meaningful progress has been made in achieving

gender equality for women and girls through the Millennium Development
Goals.
In the Commonwealth, at least 15 countries have reached the global target
of 30% women at all levels of political decision making with over a third of
female Speakers of Parliament coming from Commonwealth States.
But even though more Commonwealth women now hold key ministerial
portfolios such as Defense, Finance, and Foreign Affairs, they still hold only
17% of ministerial posts.
It is also not encouraging that women make up only 15 of the 193 heads of
government globally.
On a more positive note, in the education sector, many more girls today are
in school compared to the situation that prevailed 15 years ago.
Gender parity has also been achieved at the primary level in 69% of
countries globally.
I note with satisfaction that Kenya, has achieved gender parity in both
primary and secondary education.
The number of girls enrolling for secondary and tertiary education has also
increased significantly since the year 2000.

Page | 2

We have also seen an increment of female Members of Parliament from 7

out of 222 in 1998 to 86 out of 418 in the National Assembly and the
Senate in 2013.
In addition, in the current Government set-up, women occupy 6 out of 19
positions of Cabinet Secretaries. Likewise, women hold 6 out of 26
positions of Principal Secretaries.
Further, Kenya has put in place laws reserving 30% of all public
procurement for women, youth and persons with disabilities.
An Anti-Female Genital Mutilation Board has also been established in an
effort to end FGM.
Still, the challenges to achieving gender equality remain significant.
Remember according to the last census, women made 52% of the Kenyan
population.
That is why it is important that we use this opportunity to build on the
successes and momentum of the Millennium Development Goals.
Our roles in ensuring that the agenda is well facilitated will have to involve
a strengthened global partnership for development.
The women empowerment agenda should strive to include supportive
policies towards increasing the involvement of women in enterprises.
Further, we need to engage in local dialogues to engage our leaders in
finding solutions to these issues.
Page | 3

Emphasis should be on encouraging women to take leadership roles and to

replicate the best practices with regard to women empowerment.
Finally, let me emphasize that as advocates for women empowerment, we
need to reach beyond our usual territories and engage those currently not
involved in these agendas.
It is now my pleasure to declare this conference officially open.
I hope that during your stay in Kenya, you will take the opportunity to visit
our world renowned game parks and beaches for a truly unique Kenyan
experience.
I wish you fruitful deliberations.
Thank you.

Page | 4