Overview
Region: Kenya
Founded: March 2014
Type: Women-led community-based organization
Scope of Work: Local level, Kakamega County, Western Kenya
Issues
Gender equality
Attacks on women human rights defenders; Diversity and Inclusion; Economic access, rights and empowerment; Education; Gender-based and Sexual violence; Sexual and reproductive health services; Women's empowerment.
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WOPA is on a mission to eradicate poverty and promote sustainable grassroots health and development through community empowerment and greater women involvement. The team envisions a healthy society of equity where all women, girls and other marginalized community groups can realize and utilize their full potential to enhance sustainable development.
According to the World Poverty Clock, 17% of Kenya's population lives in extreme poverty (below $1.90 USD a day), with the extreme poverty rate for women even higher (18%). Gender inequality is a huge issue in the country with a significantly gender pay gap – the gender gap index score in Kenya increased to 0.69 in 2021, meaning that females were 30 percent less likely to have the same opportunities as males in the country. The unemployment rate is also higher for women according to World Bank data, with 6% of women unemployed in 2020 versus 5.5% of men.
Gender-Based Violence (GBV) also threatens the integrity of women in Kenya, where 41% of women have experienced physical or sexual violence in their lifetime. Kakamega county, where WOPA is located, is one of the leading in GBV, with 5% of women being abused daily at home. GBV has been registered as one of the main causes of teenage pregnancy in the county, where 1,000 girls are being impregnated monthly, which leads to complications during delivery and can even lead to death, they are also at a high risk of contracting HIV/ AIDS.Finally, some deeply entrenched cultural practices and beliefs, such as “wife inheritance”, paying of a bride price (which creates an idea of “ownership” of the wife by men) and forced marriages, are inherently discriminative and threaten the rights of women and children.
Advocating for women’s rights including their right to own land, inherit parental property, and meaningfully participate in local leadership and leading HIV/AIDS awareness campaigns
Ensuring freedom and seeking justice for victims of sexual and gender-based violence
Creating income-generating activities to enable women’s economic resilience.
Providing access to education and mentorship support for young girls, vulnerable children and orphans.
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WOPA was founded in 2014 by Violet Ombaka, a Public Relations and Communications professional to challenge the status quo, promote gender equality and empower women to take the lead. WOPA’s office is located in the town of Mumias, Kakamega county, where 60% of the population lives below the poverty line. WOPA has a professional team of 5 staff, 9 Board members and is largely run by volunteers who support and engage in most of its activities. 90% of the members are women.
WOPA seeks to improve the lives of women and girls as well as the vulnerable people from marginalized areas. The team works on an array of critical issues and develops a portfolio of activities. In this case study we’ll highlight some key wins to demonstrate WOPA’s energy and passion in their mission of achieving gender equality and empowerment of women.
widows got back the right to their properties
More than
widows and vulnerable women trained to stand up for their land and leadership rights, with many of them vying for local leadership roles and government roles
More than
young girls have been empowered against engaging in early sexual activity, curbing the ever-rising number of teenage pregnancies that interrupt girls’ education.
More than
Patients with HIV have returned back to treatment thanks to WOPA’s trainings on HIV HIV/AIDS awareness, prevention, care and support to both infected and affected people.
One of the greatest milestones for WOPA has been to see widows, who had their pieces of land confiscated by their in-laws after the death of their husbands, getting these lands back to benefit them and their children.
In Kakamega county, the second most populous in Kenya, women’s rights are systematically neglected and violated, yet there are very few legal avenues for redress, In this context of a patriarchal society and a conservative cultural mindset, men are seen as heads of households and women are forced into arranged marriages having little influence in decisions that may affect their lives or those of their families. Historically, women could not own property or the land they work and live at, nor were allowed to receive inheritance of their deceased husbands.
Since 2017 WOPA has managed to support 354 widows in getting back their properties and grabbed land through linking them to pro bono lawyers, supporting with their case filling expenses, and accompanying them during case hearing. WOPA managed to deliver justice through lawsuits, brought on board all stakeholders involved in defending women issues including government officials, and carried out multiple trainings for widowed women in rural areas to educate them on their constitutional rights and empower them to defend for these rights.
Today more than 5,500 vulnerable women are feeling more resilient and independent economically, are able to defend themselves whenever their rights are infringed, and are not afraid to take up leadership roles in their communities.
“In a community where women have no voice or power to own or inherit property, an organization in Kakamega County in western Kenya is slowly changing the narrative by giving widows a voice in the fight to establish their rights”
WOPA has done an incredible work of increasing individual awareness on Gender Based Violence (GBV) and Sexual and Reproductive Health Rights (SRHR) among rural girls and women. Young girls receive mentorship which helps them increase their confidence, builds on their self-esteem and inspires them to protect their rights and claim for justice
According to the Kenya Health Information reports , Kakamega is among the top counties registering Gender Based Violence (GBV) cases in the country. This is a very complex problem in Kenya, worsened by the general ‘acceptance’ of sexual violence against young girls and women within a patriarchal society. Sexual and gender-based violence offences are often committed in private and without witnesses. The lack of evidence and family support (families often seeking to silence girls) hampers the functionality of the justice system and oftentimes discourages survivors from reporting sexual abuses. In order to break this circle, WOPA decided to carry out mentorship and trainings programs for more than 3,500 girls on their health and safety rights, building their confidence and encouraging and supporting them to report any cases of rape, abuse or other violent acts to relevant law enforcement authorities without fear of reprisal. Additionally, WOPA started to work with the gender desks in police stations (composed mostly of men) to train their members on GBV and women and girls' rights. As a result, the number of GBV reported to the authorities in Kakamega county rose from 15% to 30% only in the year 2021.
WOPA’s mentorship and training programs also support girls who live in extreme poverty and are neglected by their parents by raising their awareness and knowledge on topics such as teenage pregnancy and menstrual hygiene, and by providing them with sanitary pads.
“As girls, we go through a lot of challenges, if you try to ask for pads they say they have no money but they will always have money to buy alcohol and drugs every day. WOPA’s talks have given us confidence, and we look forward to being tomorrow’s great people in the society despite the environment we live in”.
Another pressing challenge in the Kakamega county is the large number of people with HIV/AIDS, many of whom live below poverty level and often experience discriminatory and negative attitudes towards themselves.
In collaboration with community leaders, partnerships with the National AIDS control council and Naona Women Group, WOPA offered trainings on prevention, care and support to both infected and affected people through Voluntary Counselling and Testing (VCT) referrals to the nearest hospitals and clinics, condom disbursement, behaviour change trainings, home visits, and food distribution among others.
WOPA has helped to trace more that 5,000 HIV patients who have returned to treatment and continues these efforts with the National AIDS control council via monthly reporting. 7,000 people received training on HIV/AIDS awareness.
The Alliance has also reached out and improved the lives, social status and dignity of young beneficiaries living with HIV/AIDS, LGBT and Persons Who Inject Drugs (PWID) in Mumias through advocacy, training and social mobilization. WOPA helps them to access treatment, medicine and to start income-generating activities to regain some independence and stability and reduce the stigma against people infected and affected by HIV/AIDS.
“In June 2019, WOPA officials who visit regularly enlightened us on how to reduce stigma and live positively. I learnt that one needs to adhere to drug prescriptions, have a positive mindset, eat nutritious food, maintain hygiene and treat opportunistic infections. They also introduced us to different farming techniques, financial literacy and a “merry-go-round” table banking,”
Involving men and boys in awareness building activities is key to address sexual and reproductive health rights, HIV/AIDS, and gender based violence in Kakamega County. WOPA underscored that without the involvement of men and boys in their awareness raising campaigns and workshops, cultural changes around women's rights would be impossible, and empowered women would still face critical barriers in their homes if men and boys were not aware and did not acknowledge support women's rights
Working closely with community members, other grassroots organizations and women rights' movements is critical to increasing the reach and effectiveness of WOPA's work. As an example, by collaborating with the County Empowerment for Marginalized Groups (CEMAG), Poverty Eradication Action Group (PEAG), Coalition for adolescent girls (CAG) and other networks, it was possible to reach out to more vulnerable women and girls, exchange learning, benchmark and best practices on how to better support them. . WOPA also works hand in hand with community leaders, administration officers and village elders to have their support and build strong community initiatives. WOPA has assembled a team of Community Resource Persons (CORPS), with whom they collaborate to ensure any form of violence against women is documented and punished so that the community at large understands the importance of upholding women rights. Another example is WOPA’s work with Community Health Volunteers (CHVs) trained on HIV/AIDS, nutrition and reproductive health that carry out educational sessions for women and girls in the villages on health education and support.
Strengthening partnerships with government institutions enables WOPA to build successful initiatives and reach women where it would not otherwise be possible. WOPA's partnership with the Kenya Agricultural and Livestock Research Organization (KALRO) led to the “Passing of the Gift Initiative”, which is supporting rural women with additional income. Another example is their partnership with the Kakamega Prison, where WOPA runs women empowerment programmes and uses the Prison’s Dispensary to refer patients. The Prison’s Social Welfare Department gives WOPA staff an opportunity to talk to the female inmates, provide them with personal staples and remind them that they are still part of their communities.
Since WOPA’s founding in 2014, the team has been able to progress towards their vision despite not having received since recently any funds from institutional donors, only from friends and other individuals who believe in WOPA's mission. WOPA is currently being funded by Global Affairs Canada through Uraia Trust, and other implementing partners like Care Kenya, Creaw Trust and Crawn Trust, through a project called Women’s Voice and Leadership (WVL). WOPA aims to begin more diversified fundraising in the future to have their own funds to, for example, directly support the GBV survivors – their current strategy is immediate referral to those partner organizations with the GBV funds and the use of pro bono lawyers.
WOPA also aspires to take a step forward and transform itself from a community-based organization to an NGO that would impact a greater number of lives and could provide sustainable development for its constituents.
”We have a big future dream of buying our own land where we can build our own offices for easier operation and great service delivery. Also, a place we can put a shelter house for the abused girls, women and children”
