The woeful plight of the girl child.

Despite the introduction of free primary education by the government in 2003 together with legal and policy framework as well as gender policy in education which were later adopted in 2007, the fate of the girl child in Kenya is still hanging in the balance yielding to the fact that some very paramount policies key among them stopping violence against girls are yet to be implemented.

This has made equity in education unachievable raising a major concern to stakeholders and development partners like ActionAid which with support from the Big Lottery Fund, UK (BLF) in July 2008 launched ‘The Stop Violence Against Girls in School’ (SVAGS), a five-year project aimed at empowering girls to enjoy their right to education and participation in a violence-free environment in Ghana, Kenya and Mozambique.

Being on its fourth year now, the SVAGS project is doing well with community dialogue meetings and training workshops for various categories of the target groups where issues affecting girls’ education have been highlighted and solutions agreed upon.

The project under the sponsorship of Catholic University of Eastern Africa (CUEA), The Girl Child Network (GCN) and ActionAid International Kenya in Kenya, has managed a research mapping out gendered patterns of violence experienced by girls in schools, homes, communities and their effect on participation in education in Wenje Division of Tana River County.

According to the survey findings, progress with school enrolment hasn’t been matched with improvements in quality of education, and the legislative and policy plans are not effective in ensuring girls’ safety and achievement within schools.

The results indicate that girls access education at later years than expected and there registers no evidence to indicate an adherence to the laws and directives on violence to protect or support girls in various communities in the division. This state has been attributed to revolting cultural practices coupled with distressing levels of poverty in the area.

On the gender gap, boys turned to be more than girls in later years because many parents can’t afford in-direct school fees, uniform, books and sanitary pads for girls despite the Free Primary Education and directive on provision of sanitary pads to girls in marginalised schools. Also, girls lack role models or women in school with whom they can confide in because there are few women teachers.

Communities in Wenje Division have strong views on gender roles, physical punishment and traditions like Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) and early marriage of school girls. Often they do not see traditional attitudes and practices, which are largely discriminatory against girls, as being oppressive or against human rights.

 Early pregnancies and child marriages are major reasons for girl-child school dropouts. From a socio-cultural perspective, most parents perceive early marriages as a way to protect girls from unwanted sex, as well as providing material support to the family in the form of bride price. According to the survey, girls experience multiple forms of violence, mostly physical like whipping and beating .Sexual harassment was also prevalent with one among every ten girls confessing to have been raped.

Unfortunately in the middle of all these, the means for girls to air their grievances are limited. They have few main sources of support including friends, family members and teachers. While the teachers deal with problems by punishing offenders, which perpetuate violence, the referral system is equally weak.

The begging question remains, ‘what then should be done?’ According to the survey findings, it’s paramount that a sustainable and integrated rights-based approach that enables children, communities and schools to challenge violence is required. Methods such as girl forums, training, sensitization and adult education to address Female Genital Mutilation, alternative forms of discipline and gender mainstreaming ought to be done.

Sensitization of the entire community children rights to challenge the held traditional practices and traditions e.g. FGM, early marriage and teenage sexuality without leading to hostility in communities, and therefore resistance to change should be done by stakeholders working closely with the local and opinion leaders on both religious and cultural fronts.

The Teachers Service Commission did a noble move which saw the commission develop the TSC circular on Teachers sexual offenders in 2010 and in 2011, launched a national database where teacher’s sexual offenders can be reported and be effectively handled.

To address the challenge further, the survey proposed the following policy interventions to be implemented by all stakeholders: One, strengthen advocacy and focus on localized implementation of policies promoting gender equality through dissemination and trainings, Promote child participation in school governance at all levels including training and support of teachers.

Secondly, in addressing violence against girls there’s need to work with girls and boys on how to manage relationships, sexuality, sexual and reproductive health, to promote alternative forms of discipline within a broader gender and rights framework by conducting a mapping exercise of existing and potential alternative discipline practices, working with teachers, teachers’ unions, teacher training institutions and families too.

On FGM, implementation of laws banning the practice be promoted and stakeholders to share information to develop alternative sources of livelihoods for FGM practitioners, among other measures.

Concerning gender parities in education, stakeholders are supposed to work with schools, parents and communities on strategies to increase girls’ enrolment and increase retention in Standard 6-8 as well other supportive measures.

On violence, an effective integrated system need to be established to address violence both at school and community levels.