Our Department

Vision

A society free from gender discrimination and violence in all spheres of life

Mission

To promote and coordinate gender mainstreaming, the fight against Gender Based Violence and socio-economic empowerment of all people for sustainable development.

Values
  • Professionalism
  • Accountability
  • Teamwork
  • Integrity
  • Equality

The State Department for Gender and Affirmative Action (SDGAA) was established following a re-organization of government ministries in Executive Order No. 1 of January 2023 Organization of Government of The Republic of Kenya and in Executive Order No 2 of November, 2023 became one of the two State Departments in the Ministry of Gender, Culture, The Arts and Heritage. i.e. the State Department for Gender and Affirmative Action the other being the State Department for Culture, The Arts and Heritage. 
The Department derives its mandate from the Constitution of Kenya in Articles 10, 27, 60, 61, 81 and 100 among others and the Executive Order No. 2 of 2023.  Article 10 outlines the national values and principles of governance which include equality, equity, inclusiveness and non-discrimination which provide anchorage for gender equality; and Article 27 ingrains the right to equality and freedom from discrimination.
The mandate of the State Department for Gender and Affirmative Action as provided in Executive Order No. 2 of 2023 include:

  1. Gender Policy Management; 
  2. Special Programmes for Women Empowerment; 
  3. Gender Mainstreaming in Ministries/ State Departments/State Agencies; 
  4. Community Mobilization on Gender Issues; 
  5. Domestication of International Treaties/Conventions on Gender; 
  6. Policy and Programmes on Gender Violence; 
  7. Affirmative Action Policy; 
  8. Promote equity; 
  9. Undertake a national survey on special needs; 
  10. Mainstreaming affirmative action in Ministries/ Departments / Agencies; and
  11. Ensure Compliance with affirmative action principles as envisaged in the Constitution.

The functions of the State Department for Gender and Affirmative Action (SDGAA) are currently being executed through four technical directorates, the Semi-Autonomous Government Agencies (SAGAs), County Gender Offices, Gender Focal Points and Administration directorate. The Gender Function entails:

1.    Developing, reviewing, interpreting, implementation and monitoring of gender policies, programmes and plans;
2.    Designing and facilitating programmes/projects that promote gender equality;
3.    Coordination of gender mainstreaming into the national development agenda;
4.    Institutionalization of gender mainstreaming in Ministries/Departments, Counties and Agencies (MDCAs);
5.    Promotion of gender socio-economic empowerment programmes;
6.    Community mobilization and Sensitization of stakeholders on gender related issues;
7.    Monitoring the implementation of gender affirmative funds;
8.    Undertaking research on gender issues;
9.    Management of the Gender Research and Documentation Centre;
10.    Coordination and Monitoring of Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) and Sexual and Gender Based Violence (SGBV) programmes; 
11.    Establishment and regulation of GBV shelters and protection centres.
12.    Development and maintenance of gender disaggregated data and management information systems;
13.    Promotion of partnership with stakeholders on gender related matters;
14.    Monitoring and validating impact of gender programmes and projects;
15.    Negotiation, domestication and reporting on gender related international and regional treaties, protocols and conventions.
 

The Department is committed to; Equality and equity between women, men, girls and boys; Influencing institutions to effectively serve women, men, boys and girls equally; Building and sustaining partnerships for gender equality; Effective communication, knowledge generation and sharing about gender issues

The Department has oversight over the following Semi-Autonomous Government Agencies, The Women Enterprise Fund (WEF), National Government Affirmative Action Fund (NGAAF) and Anti-Female Genital Mutilation Board.

The Department has deployed County Gender Officers in all the 47 Counties. The County Gender Officers perform the following roles among others: Coordinate all the departmental programmes and activities in the County; Liaise with stakeholders and relevant agencies on gender issues; Monitor County agencies on levels of compliance to gender frameworks and regulations; and prepare and submit progress reports on county programmes and projects.