Women urged to seek out male allies to bridge equality gap

In the fight to achieve gender equality, women have often seen their male counterparts as the enemy.

However, according to the experiences of women in leadership, men can be women’s greatest allies in helping them to achieve this goal.

In a round-table meeting organised by the European Union, women leaders from the Private sector, Media as well as the Political sector came together to discuss their advancement in the leadership space.

The women leaders, including those from the European Union, expressed that gender stereotypes, biases, and the burden of care work greatly impeded their progress.

Brenda Gathenya, a Gender and Disability inclusion Manager at Humanity and Inclusion, said that often, cultural and gender biases are transferred to the office.

“Sometimes women are expected to carry the care burden at the workplace, for example, serving tea at a meeting when you are the only woman there. Declining to provide this service can lead to strained relations with male colleagues at the office,” she said.

Women, she said, are labelled as difficult, rude or hard to work with when they put their foot down and demand to be addressed as colleagues rather than female colleagues.

Pamela Sittoni, the Executive Editor in Charge of Partnerships at the Nation Media Group, said that women should identify male allies in their various sectors.

As men dominate many top leadership positions, including in the media industry, Sittoni said that it is difficult for women to get the same high-level positions.

“Ask yourself who are the men who can help me grow? Once you identify them, urge them to advocate for equality of gender at those top leadership positions,” she said.

However, in terms of the challenges that impede women’s advancement in leadership, women leaders from the European Union said that they face the same challenges as women leaders in Kenya.

Cristina Diaz, Spain’s Ambassador to Kenya, said that having a presence in leadership alone is not enough.

“Having a position doesn’t necessarily mean that you have power. It also requires that you have a voice and use it. Alone, we will not be able to achieve equity. We need men on board to help advocate for our voices to be heard among other men,” she said.

Caroline Vicini, Swedish Ambassador to Kenya, added that the fastest way to achieve gender equality would be to start teaching our sons.

“Raise young men in the right way. Teach them housework, teach them that care work is for everyone so that they grow up knowing that a woman’s place is not in the Kitchen,” she said.

That way, she added, we will build a society that seeks to progress women and they will not be held back by outdated biases that say caregiving and childbearing are what women are meant for.