Italy Ambassador to Kenya Alberto Pieri recently signed an agreement with UN Women to launch the third-phase of the Let It Not Happen Again project.
Italy has committed more than $1 million [Sh100 million] to the project, through the Italian Agency for Development Cooperation.
It is working with UN Women, the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights and the Kenyan government to prevent violence against women during elections, and enhance response when it happens.
Violence against women during elections continues to be a problem, with new cases being reported during the just-concluded party primaries.
Elizabeth Waithera, 39, a UDA MCA aspirant was on April 14 injured after she was attacked by goons during nominations in Mathare constituency.
Waithera said she was attacked by goons she claimed belonged to one of her opponents at Kiboro Primary School in Nairobi.
Homarise Odote, the chief agent of South Kabuoch ward aspirant Roselyn Oyoko in ODM nominations, was attacked, assaulted and injured by goons who she claimed belonged to one of her opponents.
Odote was slashed on the head and left hand at Ogando polling centre in Ndiwa constituency as voting was going on.
It is these kind of violence cases that have been cited as a hindrance to women participating in elective politics.
How then can women be free from political violence and other abuses?
Ambassador Pieri, whose country is one of UN Women's top donors, spoke about this to freelance journalist Patrick Kariuki about this.
When did you arrive in Kenya and what are your impressions of the country so far?
Kenya is an extraordinary and rich country under many aspects. Italy and Kenya are bound by a sincere and longstanding friendship, and Kenya is one of the priority countries for the Italian Cooperation. Kenya is also one of the most dynamic economies in Africa, and Italy looks with great interest at the opportunities arising from our trade and investment relations. The significant presence of the Italian community here is a proof of the interlinkages existing between the two countries at various levels, from which both countries are benefitting.
Since my arrival in Kenya in September 2018, I could immediately sense this profound binding, and it was with great enthusiasm that I undertook the commitment, almost four years ago, to consolidate and deepen this relationship even more.
What are the priority areas of collaboration between Kenya and Italy?
The events such as the one we are celebrating today represent for me precious opportunities to reaffirm Italy’s constant commitment for mutual friendship and cooperation with Kenya.
The priority areas of collaboration between Italy and Kenya include Government and civil society, agriculture, access to basic services, women empowerment and prevention of violence against women.
In order to accelerate gender equality and end violence against women, Italy supports women empowerment as a key and cross-cutting area of intervention. The ‘Let it not happen again’ project that we are launching today is a concrete example of Italy's strong commitment in the promotion of gender equality and incidentally in the fight against discrimination and violence towards women. The goal of the project is to prevent any form of gender-based violence: the message we want to launch is “Let it not happen again!”.
I had the pleasure to launch this initiative when I first arrived in Kenya, and since then Italy has been reiterating its efforts regularly. So far, we have committed over one million dollars on this and we are now in the third phase.
Italy aligns with the international partners in recognising that gender equality and the empowerment of women and girls are essential to eradicate poverty and build a global society based on sustainable development, social justice and human rights.
Who are your key implementing partners in Let It Not Happen Again?
Through our partnership with UN Women and OHCHR, we can intervene on two complementary levels: on the one hand, we work together with key public institutions, such as the police and judiciary systems to strengthen their capacities, and on the other hand we empower civil society organizations and human rights defenders’ associations in their advocacy efforts towards duty bearers. Only thanks to this two-way approach, justice for all women and girls can be granted.
We believe that only when simultaneously tackling different dimensions and working with a variety of partners from the civil society, the international organizations and the Governmental institutions, one can accelerate toward gender equality and end any form of violence.
Gradually we are working together with the government and UN Women to create a success story based on lessons learnt through the previous phases.
In which parts of Kenya is this project active?
The project is being implemented in four counties: Nairobi, Kisumu, Bungoma and Vihiga counties. According to data from the National GBV helpline and the police, these counties have continued to record increased GBV incidences during the Covid-19 pandemic. Moreover, election cycles often spell potential conflict, with women and children being the most affected.
It is therefore key to take action to prevent and address violence against women in these areas especially now.
What progress has been made so far?
Starting from 2019, our collaboration with UN Women has greatly contributed to strengthen the response and accountability mechanisms with regards to GBV in elections, but also during emergency periods, such as the current Covid-19 pandemic.
Among results achieved, we are proud to acknowledge that the Kenyan judiciary has launched a specialized Sexual and Gender Based Violence court, as a result of the persistent advocacy efforts carried out by our Civil Society Organizations partners and survivors’ networks.
The judiciary plans to establish similar courts in other parts of the country to ensure the delivery of survivor centered and gender-responsive justice services to GBV survivors.Among the achievements reached through the previous phases, I would also like to mention
the establishment of the first Gender Directorate at the National Police Service. The police service has cascaded the appropriate training and sensitization to sub-county commanders, with a view to delivering the knowledge and skills the police needs to help ensure violence against women in elections never happens again.
We have also contributed to strengthening the capacity of women rights defenders to advocate for adequate resource allocation towards GBV response, while ensuring that survivors could receive appropriate medical and legal services. We have enhanced coordination by institutions at national and county levels on GBV prevention and response, to ensure that critical information is shared with relevant actors, thereby ensuring counties have developed contingency plans for prevention and response ahead of the elections.Never again should a woman encounter violence or sexual abuse during elections.
Let it not happen again.
Are you satisfied with the achievements made?Until violence against women is not present in our societies, one cannot be satisfied.
Different forms of violence against women are often justified under the pretext of culture or religion. Despite the tremendous advancements and the efforts made by the Government of Kenya, which I would like here to acknowledge, many challenges persist, and it is important to keep fighting.
Progress requires resources but it also requires synergies between the institutions, the civil society organizations, and ordinary citizens. This is the approach we intend to pursue to end all forms of violence against women and girls.
