Make Way Kenya
.The Make Way programme in Kenya seeks to facilitate access to inclusive and quality Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights (SRHR) for young people who face multiple intersecting discrimination due to structural and systemic social barriers. Barriers caused by state laws and policies, but also by the social and cultural norms of this society.
Deciding who to focus on
Kenya has a young and rapidly growing population of 47.6 million people. According to the 2019 population census, 75% of the population are under the age of 35 and 59% under the age of 25. But these young people are not all the same.
The definition of the group chosen as the focus of the Kenya programme was based on context analysis and validation done by young people and Make Way collaborating partners at a co-creation workshop. It includes youth in all their diversities, such as people living in especially difficult circumstances, e.g. refugees, those living in extreme poverty in informal settlements or on the streets, and others whose lives are restricted by the norms and conservatism of faith institutions.
Vision of the Kenya programme
- To build a movement of civil society organisations (CSOs) who actively work on intersectional lobby and advocacy at all levels.
- To include and support meaningful youth participation in lobby and advocacy, especially young people who face multiple intersecting discrimination themselves.
- To collectively influence SRHR policy and practice at various levels, with the aim of embedding intersectionality and providing resources for it.
- Ultimately, to ensure that young people who face discrimination can exercise their SRHR.
Overall objective calls for collaboration
The programme aims to achieve its objective of enhancing access to SRHR for youth facing discrimination through innovative lobby and advocacy by youth civil society organisations and their allies. To reach the ambitious yet essential goal, it will work on the critical issues identified during the context analysis and co-creation workshops and shown below.
SRHR local context scanning:
Strengthening youth leadership
All the Kenya Make Way programme partners are based in the country: Akina Mama wa Afrika, FAWE – Kenya Chapter, The Circle of Concerned African Women Theologians, Cheshire Disability Services Kenya and VSO. Of their 11 collaborating partners (national and grass-roots based CSOs), four are youth-led.
The Make Way programme in Kenya aspires to strengthen youth leadership and governance on the Country Coordinating Group (CCG – the governing structure) by allocating double votes to each of the three young people on the CCG.
