In 2025, Defenders Coalition’s NiMama Network alongside the EndFemicide Movement catalysed a national policy dialogue to address the epidemic of gender-based violence, including femicide. In the engagements, we submitted 14 key policy recommendations for consideration by the then Technical
Working Group on addressing gender-based violence, including femicide.
On 26 January 2025, the Technical Working Group made public the findings of the report.
We are happy to report that 8 of the 14 recommendations made were adopted by the Technical Working Group.
Unadopted Recommendations from the Memorandum of Reasons and Understanding
1. Policy Changes 4 – Address definition gaps: While discussing issues of gender, we urge the TWG to adopt definitions from the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights which defined gender as the roles, behaviors, activities, and traits associated with societal expectations for women and men, extending to include transgender, gender non-conforming, and non-binary identities. Gender identity refers to a person’s internal sense of their own gender, while gender expression is the outward presentation through social, behavioral, or physical cues.
2. Service Improvements 1-Institutionalize Community Consultation: Mandate that all future legal and policy reforms related to GBV and femicide incorporate extensive, continuos consultations with affected communities; including having GBV community champions at grassroots level. This must include feminist organizations, female sex worker-led groups, gender diverse women and other grassroots stakeholders to ensure policies are truly reflective of lived realities and needs.
3. Service Improvements 3- Review of Bail and Bond Considerations: Ensure bail and bond procedures take into account the circumstances of femicide and GBV cases so that any suspect in a femicide case face minimal possibility of pre-trial release and/or are issued with strict terms including freezing of bank accounts, confiscation of ID and/or Passport, restriction of movement orders and bi-weekly reporting of the suspect to a police station.
4. Establish a Specialized Femicide Court System: Restructure the newly established GBV- courts to ensure they are dedicated and equipped with specially trained judges/magistrates and prosecutors focused exclusively on GBV and femicide cases.
5. Service Improvements 5- Establish Specialized Units: Urgently mandate the establishment of one-stop GBV Centres in all sub-counties within designated counties across Kenya. These integrated hubs should fasttrack investigations, provide immediate support to survivors, and ensure timely prosecutions. In addition, require annual reporting on GBV case handling by law enforcement to enhance transparency and accountability, thereby driving systemic reforms
6. Service Improvements 6- Implement Gender-Motivated Sentencing Guidelines: Introduce mandatory minimum sentences for convicted femicide perpetrators, eliminating lenient sentencing. This approach would remove traditional mitigating factors from consideration and establish femicide as among the most severely punished crimes in Kenya.
READ THE REPORT_OF_THE_TECHNICAL_WORKING_GROUP_ON_GENDER-BASED_VIOLENCE__GBV__INCLUDING_FEMICIDE