KIPPRA, in collaboration with UNICEF, launched the “status of children in Kenya report; national values and principles of governance children booklet; and a report on inclusion of persons living with disability (PWD) in social economic development” on 7th December 2022 at the Kenya Institute for Special Education (KISE).
In her welcoming remarks, the KIPPRA Executive Director Dr Rose Ngugi said it was important to invest in children as they lay the foundation for sustainable and long-term economic growth. She noted that disabilities can put people in a poverty trap as PWDs have limited access to opportunities, including education, compared to those without disabilities.
Director of Economic Management at KIPPRA Dr Eldah Onsomu gave an overview of the three reports. In the status of the children report, she noted that children and youth constitute more than 40 per cent of the world population. She added that according to a Kenya National Bureau of Statistics 2019 report, Kenya’s population had reached over 44 million with 50 per cent being children (under 18 years). The report notes that investment in children ought to begin at the point of inception and include a focus on health, nutrition, education and safe Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH).
In the report on enhancing inclusivity by empowering Persons with Disabilities (PWDs), Dr Onsomu noted that 2.2 per cent of Kenya’s population above five years has some form of disability with 54.7 per cent being female. According to the report, the most prevalent form of disabilities are those related to mobility, accounting for 29 per cent while the least prevalent are those related to communication accounting for 8 per cent. In urban areas, the most prevalent forms of disability are visual.
The children’s booklet presents the national values and principles of governance in simple and visual manner that enables children understand the important values and principles from a young age.
Before the official launch of the products, the Secretary, National Cohesion and Values Mr Josiah Musili gave a keynote address. Mr Musili thanked KIPPRA for the collaborative work with his institution, including a baseline and national survey on national values and principles of governance that was done in 2015 and the KIPPRA Mentorship Programme for Universities, which gives the Directorate of Cohesion and Values an opportunity to educate university students on national values. He also thanked KIPPRA for promoting national values in all its events. Mr Musili further advocated for inclusion of an implementation matrix that assigns responsibilities to specific agencies in KIPPRA policy research reports.
Mr Alex Munyiri from National Council for Persons with Disabilities (NCPWD) delivered the Executive Director, Mr Harun Hassan’s speech. During his speech, Mr Munyiri said NCPWD would implement the research findings of the reports.
Mr Alex Munyiri National Council for Persons with Disabilities (NCPWD)
KISE Chief Executive Officer Dr Norman Kiogora thanked KIPPRA and UNICEF for their research on PWDs and for addressing challenges faced by PWDs, adding that the research findings would inform policy actions.
Chief of Social Services at UNICEF Dr Ana Gabriella Serdan highlighted the importance of the children’s report as it is evidence-based research that would guide resource allocation to address children’s issues. She thanked the Government of Kenya for passing the Children Care Act of 2022. Dr Serdan also appreciated the governments of Finland, Sweden and Italy as well as UN agencies such as UN Women and UNDP for supporting and financing work done collaboratively with KIPPRA.
Other guests who spoke spoke during the event include the Data and Information Center Coordinator at KISE Ms Fridah Kiambati and Mr Peter Kabuagi, who represented the Secretary, Children Services at the Ministry of Labour and Social Protection.
