Closing the Gender Gap for the Good of Africa

Closing the Gender Gap in East Africa and Throughout the World

Every year, the African Leadership Magazine presents a range of prestigious awards to 17 African business personalities. The winners are subjected to a points-based selection process that includes being nominated and shortlisted, an online voting process, and a final review from the editorial board. Before the final decision is made, supporting evidence is considered, and the online voting points are tallied up. This award is an important one for African economies as our continent is dependent on businesses and their leaders to create jobs and wealth, especially in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic disruption. By rewarding efforts made by business leaders, recognition highlights their contribution towards a more prosperous continent.

This year, I won the African Inspirational Business Leadership Award. It is with gratitude that I accepted this accolade, which is a gentle reminder of the importance of my work in helping the continent to evolve and take on the unique challenges we are facing. Africa’s post-pandemic recovery and economic development is something very dear to my heart, as is closing the gender gap in employment and entrepreneurship. It is up to all of us to inspire hope in Africa’s ability to solve its challenges.

Paving the Way for Positive Change

I am proud to have been nurtured professionally at KenGen, and there is no doubt that this has played a role in the privilege of receiving the award. From the start, the company was progressive enough to give me a chance. The scores of KenGen making the right decision when it comes to gender gap is now clearer than ever before. When companies are open to female leadership, female leaders are given the opportunity to thrive and grow, and this benefits everyone. My vision is to change the business landscape in two ways: to drive African economies into an upward trajectory and to close the gender gap once and for all by implementing economic, social, and employment policies geared to be gender-responsive.

A Vision of Equality

Although the gender gap has succeeded in drawing quite a bit of attention in recent years, and more women are graduating from universities than ever before, there are still many disparities. Around the world, the energy sector is male dominated. This underrepresentation of women is a travesty and also an untapped economic opportunity. When women participate in an economy, they are a formidable force. Research by the International Finance Corporation revealed that the benefits of hiring women in a range of industries include:

• Improvement in productivity
• Enhancement in innovation
• Strengthened team dynamics.
• Lower employee turnover rates.

Gender equality is not only fair, but it makes good business sense to level out the playing field for all. The door has to be opened for women to take on strategic leadership roles where they are able to make decisions, and they should be trusted to make those decisions.

Movement in the Right Direction

There has been a greater effort towards gender equality in Africa in the recent years. The Kenyan government has been particularly supportive when it comes to girlchild education. There has been a noticeable increase in the rate of female students completing basic schooling to higher education. Part of the reason behind this success was the introduction of free, mandatory primary education and free secondary education. There’s also been a massive shift in how gender equality is perceived, with several policy changes introducing affirmative action for women. Company boards, parliament, and most industries are now expected to fill at least a third of leadership positions with women. This shift is by far not the only improvement in Africa in this regard and it is indeed a herald of great developments happening in the near future.

Cultivating Resilience

There is immense potential for African women in leadership roles, and we are moving towards making it a reality. As companies like KenGen are making executive leadership roles available to anyone qualified, regardless of gender, more and more women are receiving the necessary education to enter into prominent roles. Next, we need to work on building the required confidence. We need to break down the barriers of our own perceptions that tell us that men are more talented, more deserving, or more courageous than women. And we need to help build the confidence and resilience necessary to tackle gender inequality until it is completely eradicated.

Gender equality and the empowerment of women in executive roles will continue to fuel my drive. I look forward to a time when women in Africa no longer have to struggle to achieve greatness and can do so based solely on their capabilities and inherent potential.