Kisii County has been cited as a hot bed of Gender based violence and femicide, accounting for 25% of the total national statistics.
This was disclosed yesterday during a public participation forum on legal framework governing GBV/Femicide, held at the Agricultural Training College at the outskirts of Kisii town.
The forum entails collection of views following the formation of a Presidential taskforce through gazette notice number 109 in January 2025, with terms of reference including to assess the legal framework governing the matter.
Addressing the press during the event yesterday, a taskforce member, James Nombi, cited cross cutting issues that trigger GBV/Femicide in the country, include property wrangles, economic disparities and power imbalance between men and women among other factors.
Noting the importance of the taskforce, Nombi decried the rising trend of the vice in the region and called upon the participants to give home-grown solutions on how to stamp out the vice.
He noted that a county like Migori had rampant Female Genital Mutilation especially among the Kuria Community, while in Nyamira, FGM was being facilitated by the medics because the law that prohibits FGM does not restrain medics from doing it.
Nombi, however, elucidated that the clause was declared unconstitutional and the committee will recommend that such provisions be deleted from the law.
He cited other forms of GBV as early marriages which are widespread in Narok County, and emotional abuse which was cross cutting in all counties.
Another taskforce member, Dr. Teckla Tum, identified other concerns including property inheritance, cultural related issues, illegal drugs, disinheritance of widows and mothers with only female children.
Dr. Tum said fish and sand for sex was also found to be common in Homabay and Migori counties where due to poverty, women were forced to give sex for them to be allowed to trade in fish and sand commodities.
The main aim of the taskforce is to find out the best ways of addressing GBV/femicide, and make recommendations to the presidency to address the menace.
The team is divided into various groups to reach the 47 counties and has already collected public views in parts of Rift valley and South Nyanza Region including Narok, Bomet, Homa-Bay and Migori.
By Jane Naitore
