Women MPs to Attend McGill University in Canada to Study Governance, Human Rights, and Gender Inclusion
A training program on mainstreaming gender equality and women’s empowerment (GEWE) is about to start for Kenyan female lawmakers who are members of the Kenya Women Parliamentary Association (KEWOPA).
This comes after multiple consultations on training options for Kenyan women lawmakers and their counterparts in other parliaments were held by KEWOPA, the Centre for Parliamentary Studies and Training (CPST), and the School of Continuing Studies at McGill University in Canada.
The Canadian University has developed a cause for the women’s legislatures that will focus on women’s empowerment and gender equality as a result of the sessions.
It is anticipated that the rigorous 11-week virtual curriculum would begin on May 5.
Every Monday at 5:30 p.m., there will be a one-hour, thirty-minute session taught by experts.
The four comprehensive modules of the training program will cover topics such as gender-sensitive and inclusive parliaments and parliamentary practices in mainstreaming human rights and inclusion.
Training on taking action to bring about change will be covered in another module, giving women in parliament the ability to spearhead significant and institutional reforms.
Action planning, or creating a deliberate, action-oriented approach to mainstreaming GEWE in parliamentary functions, will be the last lesson.
The training is open to anybody interested in advancing gender equality in the parliamentary process, not just female lawmakers.
47 of Kenya’s 290 lawmakers are female and were chosen by the counties’ registered voters.
Among the other things they addressed, this is only the first step the legislators will take with the institution.
The United Nations Institute for Training and Research’s (UNITAR) Training of Trainers program for Members of Parliament, the University of Nairobi’s Master of Arts in Diplomacy, and Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology’s MSc in Leadership and Governance were among the other important programs that KEWOPA discussed.
Additionally, in May 2025, McGill University and CPST launched the Contemporary Issues in Parliamentary Governance residency program in Canada. Additional chances include an upcoming CPST-IPU webinar on public involvement and the National Defence College training for legislative leaders.
There are still little details available on the cost of the training and who would be responsible for paying for it.
