Curtain falls on regional dialogue for women MPs on gender, land and climate resilience

Mavoko, Machakos County 
Friday, July 11, 2025

A high-level regional dialogue for women parliamentarians and duty bearers on gender, land, and climate resilience has officially come to a close in Mavoko, Machakos County.
The three-day forum, convened by the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD), brought together lawmakers and key stakeholders from member states across the region to discuss strategies for promoting gender equality, securing land rights, and enhancing climate resilience.
Kenyan legislators present at the forum led calls for the formation of a regional caucus to champion these goals, with Nominated MPs Sabina Chege and Irene Mayaka underscoring the importance of partnerships in achieving meaningful change.
“The path towards land justice and climate resilience is not linear, but it is achievable if we work collaboratively as women lawmakers from the IGAD region and legislate intentionally,” said Hon. Chege.
Hon. Chege, who officially closed the forum on behalf of Deputy Speaker of the National Assembly, Hon. Gladys Boss, reaffirmed Kenya’s commitment to the regional initiative.
“We look forward to sustained engagement, mutual learning, and collective action across the IGAD region,” she said.
Hon. Mayaka announced plans to start operationalize a Kenyan Women Parliamentarians’ Caucus on Land Rights and Climate, aimed at advancing the advocacy efforts locally.
“Women Parliamentarians serve as powerful agents of change in directing legislative priorities towards gender justice,” she said during the opening day of the dialogue.
The forum concluded a series of six national-level dialogues hosted in Djibouti, Ethiopia, Kenya, Somalia, South Sudan, and Uganda, which served as a build-up to the regional conversation.
IGAD’s Head of Mission to Kenya, Dr. Fatuma Adan, emphasized that the sessions were designed to strengthen the capacity of women lawmakers in addressing gender concerns, particularly in land governance and climate action.
“These dialogues aimed to strengthen the capacity of women parliamentarians to effectively champion gender issues within their legislative and oversight roles, particularly in the context of land governance and climate resilience,” said Dr. Adan.
She added: “Through these engagements, participants identified priority policy issues, highlighted persistent challenges, and proposed actionable points.”
Participants included female MPs serving in committees on land, natural resources, agriculture, and climate change, as well as representatives from national land institutions and Women Parliamentarians’ Associations.
The dialogue also provided a platform to assess progress, share experiences, and chart a common path toward gender-responsive land and climate policies across the IGAD region.