Women’s presence in decision-making positions and Advisory Boards is in very low numbers. The reasons often cited for this situation include the exclusion of women from the “old boys’ club” and lack of time to network and make informal contact. It is also claimed that women are not interested in leadership positions, lack self-confidence, are not ambitious, and concentrate more on concrete work.1

 

The Women’s Property and Inheritance Rights (WP&IR) project was designed on the premise that women are traditionally disadvantaged in relation to information, protection and demand for their property and inheritance rights. This project therefore focused on education and awareness creation at the community level with the objective of changing attitudes of the Kenyan people to respect women’s property and inheritance rights.

 

The rationale of the project is that the chiefs and the assistant chiefs [who are all hereinafter referred to as chiefs] represent the first level of government administrative structure at the community level. The chiefs handle cases on women’s property and inheritance rights almost on a daily basis. However, they lack adequate training on how to handle such cases. Education Centre for Women in Democracy (ECWD) therefore decided to build the capacity of selected chiefs and paralegals in six districts, namely, Baringo, Buret, Kajiado, Koibatek, Nandi South and West Pokot, to carry out education and awareness creation activities, handle cases and assist women to seek justice on their property and inheritance rights violations.

Amb. Seii is the founder of ECWD. She has been an advocate of women in leadership who has contributed tremendously to the women’s movement in Kenya. Amb. Seii was instrumental in the campaigns that agitated for the constitutional reforms in Kenya which saw the re-introduction of the multi party politics in 1990. She has fought some of the toughest cultural and political battles and even risen to become a member of parliament and top diplomat serving as Kenya’s High Commissioner to the Republic of South Africa between 2003 and 2007. Born 63 years ago, Amb. Seii joined Makerere University in Uganda in 1966, graduating with an honours degree in Education. She headed several secondary schools in Kenya before joining World Vision International where she learnt the value of serving the community and distinguishing herself as a champion of the oppressed and the weak. She rose within the Civil Society to help found the Education Centre for Women in Democracy in 1993 and became its first Executive Director. Amb. Seii is currently ECWD’s Chairperson where she is the strategic advisor to the organization in steering its vision.

Women are present in decision-making positions and advisory boards in very low numbers. The reasons often cited for this situation include on the one hand, the exclusion of women from the “old boys’ club”, and lack of time to network and make informal contact. On the other hand, it is claimed that women are not interested in leadership positions, lack self-confidence, are not ambitious, and concentrate more on concrete work.

“Equality in political decision making performs a leverage function without which it is highly unlikely that a real integration of the equality dimension in government policy making is feasible…women’s equal participation in political life plays a pivotal role in the general process of the advancement of women. Women’s equal participation in decision – making is not only a demand for justice or democracy but can be seen as a necessary condition for women’s interests to be taken into account”