Women are agents of positive change in climate change policies such that their involvement and input in the decision and policy making would result in a desirable change in meeting the climate change goals. However, women are more than often being left out of (climate) policy at their country level. The specific impacts they are facing are more than often not appropriately reflected in climate policies and implementation planning.

1. Gender Mainstreaming
into Climate Policy and
Implementation Plan in
Kenya
Mary Nyasimi, PhD
Inclusive Climate Change Adaptation for a
Sustainable Africa (ICCASA)
mnyasimi@iccasa-africa.org
December 16, 2020

2. The Inclusive Climate Change
Adaptation for a Sustainable
Africa (ICCASA)
• ICCASA works towards building
resilience amongst communities in
Africa through a gender-
transformative approach.
• ICCASA aims to reduce gender
inequalities through breakdown of
deep-rooted gender stereotypes
that impede progress towards
greater parity in climate change.

3. ICCASA Goals
• Building Institutional Capacity for
Equitable and Inclusive Governance of
Climate Action.
• Building the Resilience and Enhancing
Adaptive Capacity of Women to
Climate Change.
• Expanding Economic Opportunities of
Women, Youths, Indigenous Groups in
a Changing Climate.
• Increasing Adaptive Capacity and
Environmental Resilience of Grass-Root
Communities through Capacity
Building, Identifying Gender
Responsible Climate Change
Adaptation Options in all sectors

4. Climate Change Issues in Kenya
• Impacts of climate change
• Frequent and intensive floods, strong winds
and droughts
• Development resources diverted to address
climate related emergencies
• Impacts affect different gender groups
differently

5. Gendered dimensions of climate
change in Kenya
• Inclusion of gender into climate change adaptation
and mitigation actions is gaining momentum in
Kenya.
• Impacts of climate change are affecting and will
affect disproportionately rural and urban
communities in Kenya
• Women, Youth, Elderly, Marginalized/indigenous
people and People living with Disabilities (PLWD)
• Persisting gender inequalities and restrictive cultural
norms
• Inequality based on gender, age, location and
disability exists

6. Steps to address the impacts of
climate change
• National Climate Change Response Strategy (2010)
• National Climate Change Adaptation Plan (NCCAP 2013-2017 and 2018-2022)
• Climate Change Act (2016)
• National Climate Change Framework Policy (2016)
• Green Economy Strategy and Implementation Plan 2016 – 2030
• Nationally Determined Contributions (INDC 2016 and NDC 2020)
• National Adaptation Plans (2015-2030)
• REDD+ Readiness
• Kenya Climate Smart Agriculture Strategy 5.0 (2017‒2026)
• Kenya Climate Smart Agriculture Implementation Framework (2018‒2027)
• Kenya Energy ACT 2019
• Kenya Climate Change Knowledge Portal

7. Status of Equality and Inclusion in Kenya
§ Constitution of Kenya (2010) guarantees equality
and inclusion
§ Mandates Parliament to legislate for the
operationalization of such guarantees.
§ The Constitution also requires that policies and
strategies be aligned with its imperatives.
§ Special Interest Groups (Children, Youth, Women,
Indigenous and marginalized groups and
communities, older members of society, and
persons with disability)
§ National Gender and Equality Commission (NGEC)

8. Gender Mainstreaming
into Climate Change
Policies and Strategies
§ Climate Change Act (2016) and National Climate
Change Council (NCCC)
§ National Climate Change Action Plan (NCCAP) 2013-
2017 & 2018-2022
§ National Adaptation Plan (NAP) 2016-2030
§ Nationally Determined Contributions (2015 & Current
draft 2020)
§ Kenya Climate Smart Agriculture Strategy (KCSAS 2017)

9. Process of
Engendering climate
policies (Case of NDC)
§ Government of Kenya with UNDP Support
§ Inter-ministerial coordination and cooperation
§ Gender Analysis
§ Review of Policy and Instruments that promote
gender responsiveness
§ Multi-Stakeholder Consultation
§ Increased women’s participation with women’s
leadership and inputs
§ Capacity building of Multi-Stakeholder team

10. Gender analysis of climate change Policies and programmes in Kenya
1
Gender analysis
on climate
risks, impacts
& vulnerability
Inadequate gender analysis done to inform the development of
climate change polciies and strategies
Outcomes of climate change policies and strategies include:
• Aim at attaining high quality livelihood and improving the
status of women and the welfare of children, farmers,
pastoralists, elderly, persons with disabilities
• Targets at reduce the vulnerability of women, children,
youth, PLWD through increasing access to and control over
resources, especially land.
• Increasing productivity and commercialization of agricultural
related value chains with nutrition and gender
considerations.

11. Gender analysis of climate change Policies and programmes in Kenya
2
Identification
of different
groups of
vulnerable
people
Women
Children
Urban Poor
Rural Poor
People Living with
Disabilities
Men
Youth Marginalized/
Indigenous people

12. Gender analysis of climate change Policies and programmes in Kenya
3
Direct benefits
to women,
youth and other
vulnerable
groups
Climate change knowledge and products disseminated to women,
children and other vulnerable groups, through improved public
awareness & communication
Strengthen the adaptive capacity vulnerable groups and
communities through social safety nets and insurance schemes
Increasing productivity and commercialization of agricultural value
chains business for youth and women

13. Gender analysis of climate change Policies and programmes in Kenya
4
Participation &
empowerment
of women,
youth & other
vulnerable
groups
Coordination and implementation of the gender and
intergenerational climate change education and consultation
Ensures the reduction of vulnerability through economic growth and
increasing employment opportunities; training youth and women
imparting new skills
Adaptation actions are implemented with gender considerations

14. Gender analysis of climate change Policies and programmes in Kenya
5
Support and
enhancing of
education,
training and
capacity
building
Formulation of a national gender and intergenerational responsive public
education and awareness strategy on climate change and implementation
programme
Coordination and implementation of the gender and intergenerational
climate change education, consultation and learning
Inclusion of climate change with a gendered perspective in the school,
college and university curricula
Inclusion of women in the established institutions to be the voice in the
adaptation and mitigation strategies
Disseminate climate change knowledge products to potential beneficiaries,
especially women and other vulnerable groups
Establishment and maintenance of a national climate change Knowledge
and Information Management System (platform) with disaggregated data

15. Gender analysis of climate change Policies and programmes in Kenya
6
Budget
allocation for
gender
specific action
Climate change fund to assist women in climate change specific
activities and initiatives
KES 20 billion allocate to support the use of improved cook stoves
and of LPG cook stoves for women and girls in urban and rural areas
USD 274,646,553 allocated to women, youth and vulnerable groups
adaptation actions within the NAP
Inclusion of women in the established institutions to be the voice in
the adaptation and mitigation strategies

16. Gender analysis of climate change Policies and programmes in Kenya
7
Gender
responsive
monitoring &
evaluation
systems
Develop a gender-sensitive climate change database
Gender sensitive indicators - people temporarily and permanently
displaced from their homes due to drought, flood or sea level rise
All data collected for monitoring and evaluation purposes are
disaggregated and analysed with a gender lens
Establishment and maintenance of a national climate change
Knowledge and Information Management System (platform) with
disaggregated data

17. National Institutional set up on climate change and
gender
Climate Change
• National Climate
Change Council (NCCC)
• The Cabinet Secretary
(Climate Affairs)
• Climate Change
Directorate
Gender
• Ministry of Public Service,
Youth and Gender affairs
• National Gender and
Equality Commission
Climate
Change Units
Gender Desks

18. Summary
• Kenya’s climate change policies and strategies
acknowledge the adverse impact of climate
change on the vulnerable groups
• Role of women in adaptation and mitigations
actions
• Recognize the participation of women, children,
youth and PLWD
• Representation of women in the established
climate change structures and institutions

19. Challenges
• Capacities and coping strategies of vulnerable
groups not adequately highlighted
• Policies and strategies fail to adequately address
the specific vulnerabilities of the vulnerable groups
• Generalization of training and institutional
strengthening
• Kenya has not development a gender and climate
change strategy
• Kenya has not nominated a national Gender Focal
Point to UNFCCC

20. Opportunities
Kenya has made steps to address the impacts of climate change on their citizens including
women, youth, elderly, children and PLWD.
Gender, youth and marginalised
groups
have unequal access to resources
and limited mobility
Education, awareness campaigns
& capacity building
that targets and equips
vulnerable persons with
necessary climate change
knowledge and skills for
adaptation and mitigation
Climate finance
for women, youth and vulnerable
groups to ensure that they are
distinctly considered in climate
change
Adaptation and mitigation
actions
should ensure satisfactory
information is gathered from
dynamic populations with
specificity to vulnerable persons
Gender and
Climate Change
Vulnerability
Profiling
(ongoing work)

21. Thank You
Mary Nyasimi
mnyasimi@iccasa-africa.org