Women Human Rights Defenders Call for Stronger Protection as Climate Change and Harmful Cultural Practices Fuel GBV

By JOSPHINE MWENDE 

Although many communities have made significant progress in abandoning harmful practices such as Female Genital Mutilation (FGM), wife inheritance, son preference, denial of women's land ownership rights and the exclusion of women from decision-making, some societies continue to uphold traditions that perpetuate Gender-Based Violence (GBV) and inequality.

It is against this backdrop that government institutions, civil society organisations, development partners, security agencies and community leaders have intensified collaboration to combat GBV, promote environmental conservation and protect the rights of vulnerable groups.

Among the key organisations leading these efforts are the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the Women Human Rights Defenders (WHRD) Hub, the National Gender and Equality Commission (NGEC), CSO Networks, county governments and the national government. Together, they are working to create safer civic spaces, empower women and dismantle cultural barriers that limit their participation and development.

Speaking during a two-day multi-agency stakeholders' meeting in Nairobi, the Chairperson of the National Gender and Equality Commission, Rehema Jaldesa, said more than 80 per cent of Kenya's land mass is classified as Arid and Semi-Arid Lands (ASALs), which are home to approximately 38 per cent of the country's population.

She said climate change has become a major human rights issue that disproportionately affects women and other vulnerable groups."Climate shocks do not affect everyone equally. They place a heavier burden on the livelihoods and security of women and girls, children, pastoralists, indigenous communities, marginalised populations and persons with disabilities," she said.

Jaldesa noted that women human rights defenders have remained at the forefront of protecting forests, natural resources and the environment while championing climate justice.

However, she observed that many defenders carry out this work at great personal risk. According to a research conducted in 2022, at least 81 women human rights defenders worldwide lost their lives while defending land, environmental rights and climate justice. She added that many others continue to face sexual harassment, intimidation, online abuse, criminalisation and strategic lawsuits aimed at silencing their voices.

She said such cases have been reported in several Kenyan counties, including Lamu, Kwale, Kajiado, Kitui, Isiolo and Marsabit counties.

Jaldesa further revealed that the Women Human Rights Defenders Hub documented 165 cases of technology-facilitated gender-based violence between February and March 2026, with nearly one-third involving women environmental defenders. She called on more women to seek elective and appointive leadership positions ahead of Kenya's next General Election."Women occupy only 23.4 per cent of seats in the National Assembly, while representation at county level remains low.This presents an opportunity for women human rights defenders, who already possess leadership experience, to vie for political office and influence policies that promote equality and justice," she said.

The Executive Director of the Women Human Rights Defenders Hub, Salome Nduta, said the organisation has been documenting both online and physical violence against women and girls while seeking to address the root causes of gender-based violence."We have learnt that we cannot achieve gender justice without climate justice. Our work has focused on strengthening the resilience of women human rights defenders, including journalists, facilitating community dialogue with county governments and amplifying the voices of those who are often unheard," she said.

Nduta said the Hub has been implementing the eMonitor Initiative, which documents technology-facilitated violence against women environmental defenders and provides evidence to strengthen advocacy efforts."One of the most important outcomes of this project is the availability of evidence. Through the eMonitor Initiative, we have documented cases showing that women environmental defenders are targeted online simply because they speak out for environmental protection and climate justice. This evidence has strengthened our advocacy for better protection against both physical and digital violence," she said.

She added that the Hub has also developed a new digital reporting platform that will allow women human rights defenders to report incidents directly, enabling continuous monitoring of GBV, identification of emerging trends and faster coordinated responses.

The stakeholders concluded the meeting by adopting a series of resolutions aimed at strengthening collaboration among government agencies, civil society organisations and development partners.

Among the key recommendations was a call for the national and county governments, together with security agencies, to strengthen protection mechanisms for women human rights defenders against both physical and digital violence while promoting environmental justice as a critical component of sustainable development and gender equality.

The meeting reaffirmed that protecting women human rights defenders is essential not only for advancing human rights but also for safeguarding Kenya's environment, promoting climate justice and securing the rights and livelihoods of vulnerable communities.