Evidence for Gender and Education Resource
A multi-county study on gender disparities in education that directly informed County-Specific Gender in Education Action Plans (2026–2030) for four counties.
Education remains central to Kenya’s development agenda, yet gender disparities continue to limit equitable access, participation, and completion, particularly in marginalised counties. Evidence from the 2022 Kenya Demographic and Health Survey highlights uneven outcomes: girls record higher primary completion rates than boys in counties such as Narok (65% vs. 51%) and Homa Bay (86% vs. 70%), while boys are more likely to complete secondary education, notably in Laikipia, where the gap favours boys by 16 percentage points.
Population Council Kenya undertook a multi-county qualitative study across Kilifi, Homa Bay, Laikipia, and Narok, engaging 144 stakeholders drawn from communities, schools, and county systems to generate context-specific evidence on how gender norms and economic pressures influence education access, retention, and completion.
Generate context-specific evidence on how gender norms and economic pressures shape education outcomes for girls and boys. Engage community, school, and county stakeholders across four counties in the research process. Inform county-led, gender-equitable education planning aligned with national and international commitments.
Our approach
A qualitative study engaged 144 stakeholders across four counties to surface how income pressures, substance use, and cultural expectations affect boys, and how poverty, early marriage, FGM, and gender-based violence affect girls’ educational outcomes differently by county.
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