This year 2025 is significant for the Women and Girls across the world, with the global community marking the thirtieth anniversary of the Fourth World Conference on Women and adoption of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action (1995). This is a commemoration of 30 years of key milestone in achieving Gender Equality and Women’s empowerment. The Member states dedicated time to review progress on its 12 priority areas and make renewed commitments to accelerate action through a political declaration at the sixty-ninth session of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW69) that took place at United Nations Headquarters in New York from 10 to 21 March 2025.
Kenya was among several African countries that prepared and submitted a report as an accountability in the Beijing+30 review process. This year also marked the 10th Anniversary of the Decade of Action for implementation of SDGs, with only 5 years remaining towards 2030.
This reflective piece is attributed to alternative voices of 33 Women Rights organizations (WROs) and civil society organizations, members of the Coalition for Sustainable Development (SDGs Kenya Forum), SDGs Goal Group 5-Gender Equality who participated in consultative processes and contributed to the CSOs shadow report & Policy brief on the progress Kenya has made since the Beijing Platform for Action (BPfA) declaration in 1995. For Kenya this year also marked 40 years since the Nairobi forward looking strategy of 1985. What has the progress since then?
It is therefore imperative to ask the most important question: Are We there Yet?
The 2024 SDG Gender Index (https://equalmeasures2030.org/2024-sdg-gender-index/) provides a comprehensive global measure of gender equality. Developed by EM2030, it provides a snapshot of where the world stands on the vision of gender equality embedded in the 2030 Agenda. Benchmarking gender equality across 139 countries (covering 96% of the world’s women and girls) and 56 issues across 14 of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals. The key findings indicate that no country is on track in achieving Gender equality by 2030. If the current trends continue, global gender equality won’t be achieved until the 22nd century. A girl born in 2024, will have to wait until her 97th birthday!!!, probably beyond her expected lifespan to celebrate an equal society.
According to the Kenya government Beijing +30 report , (Kenya Country Report) has made significant strides in advancing gender equality, with increased political representation, improved legal frameworks, and growing financial inclusion initiatives for women. The domestication of Global and Regional Commitments into the National and sub national laws and policies have contributed to narrowing some gender gaps, particularly in education and leadership. Women increasingly engage in the economy through formal and informal employment, financial inclusion and entrepreneurship, adoption of digital technology and innovation, and climate resilience efforts. This is substantiated by testimonies of the women trailblazers who were part of the delegations at the Nairobi conference in 1985 and the Beijing conference in 1995.
They shared examples of areas of significant progress including the right to citizenship-women now have access to and own national identification documents (IDs and passports) in their own right. Financial inclusion is another area of progress where women now access to banking services have-they can open and operate bank accounts without requirement of approval of men (husbands, fathers or brothers).
How is Kenya performing on gender equality in the achievement of SDGs?
According to the 2024 SDG Gender Index (https://equalmeasures2030.org/2024-sdg-gender-index/
Kenya’s best performing indicators include:
Ind. 7.1: Proportion of population with access to electricity
Ind. 9.2: Proportion of women (15+ years) who reported that they are satisfied with the quality of roads where they live
Ind. 13.1: Extent to which the delegation representing the country at the COP meeting is gender balanced
The worst performing indicators include:
Ind. 11.1: Proportion of women (15+ years) who reported having enough money to provide adequate shelter or housing in the past 12 months.
Ind. 2.4: Proportion of women (15+ years) who reported having enough money to buy food that they or their family needed in the past 12 months.
Ind. 2.2: Food insecurity of women, based on the self-reported Food Insecurity Experience Scale (FIES)
Leaving No one Behind?
However, despite these achievements, the next five years are certainly likely to face persistent challenges that continue to undermine the gains and push us back from achieving full gender parity as envisioned thirty years ago at the adoption of the Beijing Platform for Action (BPfA)-1995.
CERTAIN GROUPS OF WOMEN AND GIRLS in all regions experience additional disadvantages and discrimination based on age, income, ethnic or religious identity, geographic location, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability, immigration status, and HIV status, among other factors. For example, young women with disabilities have fewer opportunities are more likely to be ‘Not in Employment, Education or Training’ (‘NEET’) than those without a disability. Significant gaps remain in addressing gender-based violence, economic empowerment and security, political participation, and digital inclusion.
Conclusion
The evidence presented underscores persistent disparities while also highlighting the transformative potential of well-structured interventions. Policymakers, institutions, and development partners must move beyond rhetoric to implement actionable and innovative strategies that dismantle systemic barriers and foster sustainable, inclusive growth. The intersection of gender, technology, finance, and governance necessitates urgent, data-driven responses that are both transformative and scalable.
Author: Hellen Apila- SDGs Kenya Forum Program Lead