Kisii County has been cited as a hotbed of gender-based violence and femicide, accounting for 25 per cent of the total national statistics.

This was disclosed on Saturday during a public participation forum on legal framework governing GBV/Femicide meeting at the Kisii Agricultural Training College on the outskirts of Kisii Town.

The forum for collection of views on gender-based violence and femicide follows the formation of a presidential taskforce – via gazette notice number 109 in January 2025 – to reinforce the legal framework to eliminate the crime.

Addressing the press during the event yesterday, a taskforce member, James Nombi cited cross-cutting issues that cause GBV/femicide in the country. These include disputes over property, economic disparities and power imbalance between men and women among other factors.

Noting the importance of the taskforce, Nombi decried the rising incidence of the vice in the region and called upon the participants to give home-grown solutions on how to stamp out the vice.

He noted that a county like Migori experiences rampant female genital mutilation especially among the Kuria Community, while in Nyamira, FGM was being facilitated by the medics because the law that prohibits FGM does not restrain medics from doing it.

Nombi, however, explained that the clause was declared unconstitutional and the committee will recommend that such provisions be repealed from the law. He cited other forms of GBV as early marriages which are widespread in Narok County, and emotional abuse which was cross cutting in all counties.

Another taskforce member Teckla Tum identified other factors as property inheritance, cultural related issues, illegal drugs, disinheritance of widows and mothers with only female children.

Dr Tum said fish and sand for sex was also found to be common in Homa Bay and Migori counties where due to poverty, women were forced to give sex for them to be allowed to trade in fish and sand commodities.

The main aim of the taskforce is to find out the best ways of addressing GBV/femicide and make recommendations to the presidency to address the menace.

The team is divided into several groups to reach the 47 counties and has already collected public views in parts of Rift valley and South Nyanza, including Narok, Bomet, Homa Bay and Migori.

• A Tell Media / KNA report / By Jane Naitore