Hi everyone and welcome back to my blog. This is the final post of my inquiry project on the question “What is the root cause of gender wage discrepancy in Kenya?”. In this post, I will summarize my research and provide a final answer to my inquiry question.
In my first round of research, I looked into common jobs and workplace standards and expectations in Kenya. Looking into this helped me get a basic understanding of how the Kenyan work force functions and allowed me to analyze it and see where the gender based problems were. I found that most of Kenya’s economy revolves around farming and producing things like coffee, tea, fruits and grains. Kenya is known for growing and producing those kinds of things and it is how the majority of Kenyan people get their income. However, following the traditional gender norms in Kenya, the vast majority of farms are owned by men and it is men who work on the farms to provide for their families. It is traditional for women to stay with their kids and cook and clean while the men work on the farms. Therefore, this contributes to the gender wage gap in Kenya.
In my second round of research, I took a deeper look at the Kenyan social standards and expectations to get a better understanding of how those affect the gender wage gap. I found that the Kenyan social standards are very patriarchal and revolve around men doing physical labour and working to make money for their families, while a woman’s main purpose is to get married and have as many kids as she can so that they too can follow these standards an contribute to Kenyan society. In Kenya, it is very hard for women to speak up about their experiences and traumas, which then leads to women being dismissive. It is not totally unusual for a woman to engage in paid labour outside of the household such as running salons or market stands however, it is very rare for women to work jobs that are outside of these standards. The Kenyan social standards are another contributer the the gender wage gap in the country.
In my third round of research, I looked into some of the gender-specific challenges that Kenya faces. I found that the main root cause of Sexual and Gender Based Violence (SGBV) in Kenya includes cultural and religious beliefs. Women and adolescent girls are the most vulnerable group in Kenya. They are particularly vulnerable to poverty especially at the household and community is exacerbated by gender-based violence, harmful cultural attitudes and beliefs around gender roles, norms and female empowerment This shows that life can be very hard for women and girls in Kenya as they are the most vulnerable group. Their vulnerability also contributes to the gender wage gap.
To conclude this inquiry project, I have found that my question does not have one specific answer. There are multiple root causes of the Kenyan gender wage gap, most of them revolving around the cultural and social expectations and beliefs in the country. However, things in Kenya are looking up as traditions and beliefs are evolving to be more progressive towards women and girls and with time, hopefully things will get a lot better.
