Breaking the Silence: Kenya’s Call for a Stronger Fight Against Gender-Based Violence

Women leaders are calling for a broader, community-wide response to gender-based violence, warning that many cases remain hidden and that prevention must begin long before violence occurs.

Gender-based violence remains one of Kenya’s most difficult social challenges — and one of the most difficult to measure.

For every case that reaches the authorities, there may be others that remain within homes, communities and relationships, hidden by fear, stigma or uncertainty about where to seek help.

That reality was at the centre of a renewed call by women leaders for a more inclusive approach to preventing and responding to gender-based violence (GBV).

Speaking during the Women Achievers Conference and Awards in July 2026, President’s Advisor on Women’s Rights Harriette Chiggai said tackling GBV cannot be left to government agencies alone. Families, communities, leaders and institutions all have a role to play.

The Cases That Remain Invisible

One of the biggest challenges in confronting GBV is knowing the true scale of the problem.

Chiggai said that one in four women in Kenya is affected by gender-based violence, while acknowledging that many incidents are never reported to authorities.

Fear of the consequences can prevent survivors from speaking out. In some situations, violence can continue for years without intervention, with some cases eventually escalating into severe violence and femicide.

The absence of a report, therefore, does not necessarily mean the absence of violence.

It can instead represent a survivor who is afraid to speak, a family reluctant to intervene, or a community that does not know how to respond.

From Reaction to Prevention

For years, much of the response to GBV has focused on what happens after an incident.

The emerging conversation is increasingly concerned with what happens before it.

Chiggai called for greater emphasis on prevention through education, awareness and community participation. She also highlighted the importance of strengthening systems that provide survivors with access to justice, counselling and protection.

That approach recognises that fighting GBV requires more than laws and institutions.

It requires conversations at home, in schools, workplaces, places of worship and within communities.

The Role of Parents and Communities

The discussion also extended to the relationship between parents and young people.

Chiggai urged parents to maintain open communication with their children and take a more active role in guiding them as they navigate changing social environments.

For families, the challenge is not simply discipline. It is communication, mentorship and creating an environment where young people can discuss difficult experiences and seek guidance without fear.

The wider message is that prevention begins close to home.

Women at the Decision-Making Table

The conversation around GBV is also closely connected to women’s participation in leadership.

Chiggai called for greater representation of women in leadership and renewed the push towards implementation of Kenya’s constitutional two-thirds gender principle. National Assembly Deputy Speaker Gladys Shollei similarly encouraged women to pursue leadership and compete for opportunities to serve in public life.

The argument is not simply about numbers.

Women in decision-making positions can bring lived experiences and perspectives into conversations about policies, institutions and services affecting women and families.

Greater participation can also create more avenues for women’s concerns to remain visible within national and local decision-making.

A Responsibility Shared by Everyone

The fight against GBV cannot rest solely on survivors, women’s organisations or government departments.

It involves the entire social fabric.

Parents can create safer spaces for children to speak. Communities can challenge harmful attitudes. Institutions can strengthen reporting and survivor-support systems. Leaders can improve accountability and access to justice. Individuals can refuse to normalise abuse.

The challenge is complex because violence often occurs within relationships and environments where trust already exists.

That makes prevention, early intervention and community awareness particularly important.

Giving Survivors a Voice

Perhaps the most important step is creating conditions in which survivors can speak without fear of blame, rejection or retaliation.

When cases remain hidden, opportunities for intervention disappear with them.

Strengthening counselling, protection and access to justice can therefore be as important as responding to the perpetrators themselves.

A survivor needs more than a reporting mechanism. They need to know that there is somewhere safe to go, someone willing to listen and a system capable of responding.

Kenya’s Continuing Conversation

The renewed calls from women leaders come as Kenya continues to grapple with questions surrounding violence against women and girls.

The scale of the challenge makes simple solutions unlikely. But it also makes silence increasingly costly.

The message emerging from the women’s leadership community is clear: preventing gender-based violence requires participation far beyond one institution or one group.

It requires families to talk, communities to act, institutions to respond and leaders to remain accountable.

Most importantly, it requires creating a society in which violence is not hidden behind closed doors and survivors are not left to face it alone.

The fight against gender-based violence begins with breaking the silence — and ensuring that those who speak are heard.