A policy dialogue in Nairobi has renewed focus on the persistent gender gaps in Kenya’s labour market, with experts warning that structural, cultural, and institutional barriers continue to block women from fully participating in formal employment, despite significant progress in education.

The forum, held on June 30, 2025, brought together researchers, policymakers, and private sector representatives under the Yale Economic Growth Centre and Yale Inclusion Economics. The meeting sought to examine how evidence can guide efforts to improve gender equality, human capital development, and economic growth in Kenya.

Nancy Nafula from the Kenya Institute for Public Policy Research and Analysis (Kippra) pointed out that Kenya’s labour market remains largely imbalanced. Quoting data from the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (KNBS), she noted that while 1.8 million men are formally employed, only 1.2 million women have similar jobs.

“The labour market is already skewed towards male employment. This is despite the fact that we have nearly closed the gender gap in basic education. However, gaps remain glaring at higher levels of education, where access becomes more limited for women,” she said.

She added that even for women who attain higher education, opportunities in better-paying industries such as manufacturing and information and communication technology are still largely inaccessible.

“Many women are channelled into caregiving and lower-paying health sector jobs like nursing,” Nafula said.

She identified access to productive resources such as land as another major limitation. According to Nafula, most women still do not own land, and even when they do, they often lack title deeds, which limits their ability to access credit due to lack of collateral.

“To date, most women do not own land, and even those who do often lack title deeds. Without land ownership, access to credit is nearly impossible because banks require collateral,” she said.

Nafula also flagged the burden of unpaid care work as a hidden but critical barrier keeping women out of income-generating activities.

“KNBS data shows women spend five times more than men on unpaid care work. This limits their time for income-generating activities, yet such work is not even recognised as formal employment,” she said.

Although discussions are ongoing on how unpaid care work could be included in GDP calculations, Nafula warned that its current invisibility continues to hurt women’s economic prospects.

Echoing her remarks, Yale University economics professor Rohini Pande called for both structural reforms and targeted policies to foster inclusive growth. She pointed out that many African countries are now revisiting industrial policy as a tool for inclusive development in the face of shifting global trade dynamics.

“If women lack access to education in key areas or have heavy unpaid care burdens, they can’t compete fairly. This is where government intervention is needed,” she said.

Pande added that beyond government action, the private sector must also improve working conditions for women by offering support systems that allow them to thrive.

Nafula further explained that legal frameworks meant to promote equal opportunities for women often fail during implementation. She revealed that assumptions about family obligations often lead employers to favour male hires, while women tend to be placed in lower positions with limited chances for promotion.

“Employers sometimes prefer to hire men because they assume women will need maternity leave. When women are hired, they often get lower-tier roles, making upward mobility extremely difficult,” she said.

“Women remain stuck in the lower echelons of the workforce. The ideal legal protections exist, but employers still discriminate during recruitment and promotions,” she added.

Speakers at the event warned that excluding women from the workforce is not only an issue of fairness, but also a drag on national development.

“The evidence is clear, countries that fail to match women’s skills with appropriate opportunities are leaving money on the table. Inclusive economic transformation is not just a moral imperative, it’s an economic one,” Pande said.

The experts urged the government, civil society, and private sector actors to come together and address the many layers of barriers women face, ranging from unpaid work and land ownership to education and workplace discrimination.