By Dr. Kariuki Muigua, PhD (Leading Environmental Law Scholar, Policy Advisor, Natural Resources Lawyer and Dispute Resolution Expert from Kenya), Winner of Kenya’s ADR Practitioner of the Year 2021, ADR Publication of the Year 2021 and CIArb (Kenya) Lifetime Achievement Award 2021*

Gender is now considered to be a key consideration for equitable and effective biodiversity conservation practice since ethically, ensuring gender-equitable participation is a cornerstone for respecting, protecting, and promoting human rights and for not disadvantaging anyone in the process of conserving biodiversity. At the international law level, CBD Decision XII/7 2 encourages Parties to give gender due consideration in their national biodiversity strategies and action plans and to integrate gender into the development of national indicators.

Under the Constitution of Kenya, Article 10, the national values and principles of governance include–(a) patriotism, national unity, sharing and devolution of power, the rule of law, democracy and participation of the people; b) human dignity, equity, social justice, inclusiveness, equality, human rights, nondiscrimination and protection of the marginalised. Under Article 27(1), every person is equal before the law and has the right to equal protection and equal benefit of the law; (2) Equality includes the full and equal enjoyment of all rights and fundamental freedoms; (3) Women and men have the right to equal treatment, including the right to equal opportunities in political, economic, cultural and social spheres.

Article 59 establishes the Kenya National Human Rights and Equality Commission whose functions include inter alia promoting gender equality and equity generally and to coordinate and facilitate gender mainstreaming in national development. Article 175 (c) provides that one of the principles of principles of devolved government is that no more than two-thirds of the members of representative bodies in each county government should be of the same gender. In the spirit of equality and non-discrimination, gender mainstreaming in the agricultural sector becomes an important aspect of human rights approaches to biodiversity conservation.

The National Gender and Equality Commission Act, 2011 was enacted to establish the National Gender and Equality Commission pursuant to Article 59(4) of the Constitution; to provide for the membership, powers and functions of the Commission, and for connected purposes. Some of the functions of the Commission under the Act include, inter alia, to—promote gender equality and freedom from discrimination in accordance with Article 27 of the Constitution; among others, to monitor, facilitate and advise on the integration of the principles of equality and freedom from discrimination in all national and county policies, laws, and administrative regulations in all public and private institutions; act as the principal organ of the State in ensuring compliance with all treaties and conventions ratified by Kenya relating to issues of equality and freedom from discrimination and relating to special interest groups including minorities and marginalised persons, women, persons with disabilities, and children; co-ordinate and facilitate mainstreaming of issues of gender, persons with disability and other marginalised groups in national development and to advise the Government on all aspects thereof; work with other relevant institutions in the development of standards for the implementation of policies for the progressive realization of the economic and social rights specified in Article 43 of the Constitution and other written laws; and co-ordinate and advise on public education programmes for the creation of a culture of respect for the principles of equality and freedom from discrimination.

Understanding gender roles and relation in agriculture along value chains and identifying key factors that contribute to gender gaps in agriculture is considered crucial for the design and formulation of gender inclusive policy and institutional innovations that equalize opportunities for women and men farmers and equally benefit women and men from the agricultural research for development and dissemination of technologies. It is worth pointing out that commentators in the last two decades observed that most sustainable development efforts, including biodiversity initiatives, derived from a gendered vision of segmented sustainability that divides home, habitat and workplace into separate domains, with women at ‘home’, men in the ‘workplace’ and protected ‘habitats’ devoid of humans. However, over the years, there has been a paradigm shift, at least theoretically on the relationship between men and women in relation to biodiversity as well as the general relationship between man’s day to day life and the natural habitats, in light of the United Nations 2030 Agenda on Sustainable Development (SDGs Agenda).

The SDGs Agenda seeks to adopt a holistic approach to sustainability that not only includes both men and women but also recognizes the interconnectivity between human life and the natural habitats. This was informed by the realization that in many rural communities throughout the world women are responsible for the reproduction of the work force, the production of daily subsistence, and the maintenance of the complex ecosystems and particular species that support agriculture, livestock and forest production, yet, most women are legally landless and not officially part of the work force. The traditional stereotypical role of women in most African homes makes them important players in conservation and use of Plant Genetic Resources (PGR) worldwide where they are often responsible for ensuring household food security and family health, which makes them have greater knowledge and a more diversified perspective than men on PGR because they are responsible for producing or procuring a large number of plant resources and for storing and transforming plants to meet household needs.

Notably, the Constitution of Kenya provides that the objects of devolved government are, inter alia, to promote democratic and accountable exercise of power; to foster national unity by recognising diversity; to give powers of self-governance to the people and enhance their participation in the exercise of the powers of the State and in making decisions affecting them; to recognise the right of communities to manage their own affairs and to further their development; to protect and promote the interests and rights of minorities and marginalised communities; to promote social and economic development and the provision of proximate, easily accessible services throughout Kenya; to ensure equitable sharing of national and local resources throughout Kenya; and to facilitate the decentralisation of State organs, their functions and services, from the capital of Kenya.

In addition, it provides for participation of, inter alia, minorities and marginalized groups, in governance and all other spheres of life. The foregoing provisions are important especially in relation to the provisions of the County Governments Act, which also affirm the fact that citizen participation in county governments should be based upon the principles of, inter alia, protection and promotion of the interest and rights of minorities, marginalized groups and communities; legal standing to interested or affected persons, organizations, and where pertinent, communities, to appeal from or, review decisions, or redress grievances, with particular emphasis on persons and traditionally marginalized communities, including women, the youth, and disadvantaged communities; reasonable balance in the roles and obligations of county governments and non-state actors in decision-making processes; promotion of public-private partnerships; and recognition and promotion of the reciprocal roles of non-state actors’ participation and governmental facilitation and oversight.

United Nations Agenda 21 requires that Governments at the appropriate level, with the support of the relevant international and regional organizations, should, inter alia, promote a multidisciplinary and crosssectoral approach in training and the dissemination of knowledge to local people on a wide range of issues which include various resources management. Further, Agenda 21 states that Coastal States should promote and facilitate the organization of education and training in integrated coastal and marine management and sustainable development for scientists, technologists, managers (including community-based managers) and users, leaders, indigenous peoples, fisherfolk, women and youth, among others.

*This is article is an extract from an article by Dr. Kariuki Muigua, PhD, Kenya’s ADR Practitioner of the Year 2021 (Nairobi Legal Awards), ADR Publisher of the Year 2021 and ADR Lifetime Achievement Award 2021 (CIArb Kenya): Muigua, K., Approaches to Biodiversity Conservation: Embracing Global Resource Conservation Best Practices, Available at: Muigua, K., Gender Perspectives in Biodiversity Conservation, Available at: http://journalofcmsd.net/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/Gender-Perspectives-in-Biodiversity-Conservation.pdf. Dr. Kariuki Muigua is Kenya’s foremost Environmental Law and Natural Resources Lawyer and Scholar, Sustainable Development Advocate and Conflict Management Expert. Dr. Kariuki Muigua is a Senior Lecturer of Environmental Law and Dispute resolution at the University of Nairobi School of Law and The Center for Advanced Studies in Environmental Law and Policy (CASELAP). He has published numerous books and articles on Environmental Law, Environmental Justice Conflict Management, Alternative Dispute Resolution and Sustainable Development. Dr. Muigua is also a Chartered Arbitrator, an Accredited Mediator, the Africa Trustee of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators and the Managing Partner of Kariuki Muigua & Co. Advocates. Dr. Muigua is recognized as one of the leading lawyers and dispute resolution experts by the Chambers Global Guide 2022. 

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