Kenyan women Members of Parliament under the Kenya Women Parliamentary Association (KEWOPA) are set to begin a training course on Mainstreaming Gender Equality and Women Empowerment (GEWE).
This follows numerous consultative meetings between KEWOPA, the Centre for Parliamentary Studies and Training (CPST), and Canada's McGill University’s School of Continuing Studies on training opportunities for women legislators in Kenya and their counterparts in other parliaments.
Following the meetings, the Canadian University has crafted a cause for the women's legislatures that will center on gender equality and women's empowerment.
The training is expected to commence on May 5 with an intensive 11-week virtual program.
It will be a one-hour, 30-minute expert-led session every Monday at 5:30pm.
The training course will have four in-depth modules, including parliamentary practices in mainstreaming human rights and inclusion and gender-sensitive and inclusive parliaments.
Another module will include training in taking action to create change, empowering women in parliament to lead institutional and substantive reforms.
The final module will be action planning—developing a strategic, action-orientated approach to mainstream GEWE in parliamentary functions.
The course is not only restricted to women legislators but also stakeholders interested in promoting gender equality in the parliamentary process.
Out of the 290 legislators in Kenya, 47 of them are women elected by registered voters from the counties.
This is just the first course the legislatures will be taking with the university among the more they discussed.
Other key programs KEWOPA discussed included exploring various other training opportunities, including Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology’s MSc in Leadership and Governance, the University of Nairobi’s Master of Arts in Diplomacy, and the United Nations Institute for Training and Research's (UNITAR) Training of Trainers program for Members of Parliament.
McGill University and CPST also introduced the Contemporary Issues in Parliamentary Governance residency program in Canada, scheduled for May 2025. Other opportunities include the National Defence College course for parliamentary leaders and an upcoming CPST-IPU webinar focused on public participation.
Details of how much the course will cost and who will be paying for them remain scanty.
