The Chairperson of the National Gender and Equality Commission, Hon. Rehema Jaldesa, has asked duty bearers in Turkana County to show, by name and by number, the people their programmes reach. 

She was addressing the Turkana County Equality and Inclusion Technical Working Group in Lodwar on Tuesday 6 October 2026. The Commission and the County Government agreed in 2019 to strengthen the group as the platform for coordinating equality and inclusion work in the county.

 “Seven years later, the Commission has come back with one direct question. Has coordination changed outcomes for the people of this county?” she said.

THE 2019 RECORD 

Hon. Jaldesa recalled the findings of the 2019 mission: sexual and gender-based violence cases collapsing in court for lack of evidence, survivors paying for P3 and Post Rape Care forms, three female police officers among 160 in Kakuma Sub-County, and children in conflict with the law sent to institutions far from Turkana. She asked the Judiciary, the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions, the National Police Service and Children Services to “tell us what those numbers are today.”

She renewed the Commission’s offer to support the County Gender Mainstreaming Policy, which she said is before the County Assembly awaiting public participation. On affirmative action, she said the law reserves thirty per cent of government procurement opportunities for women, youth and persons with disabilities, and that the gap is information and access. She asked institutions to report how many people from minority and marginalised communities their programmes reached in the past year.

ELECTIONS AND REGISTRATION 

The Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission gazetted the election period for the 10 August 2027 General Election on 20 August 2026. The Chairperson said the Commission is impartial and that its concern is the right of every person to take part. She asked the national government and the IEBC to take identity card and voter registration services to the hardest-toreach communities.

 Registration remains a challenge in the county. Turkana registered 238,528 voters for the 2022 election. The enhanced registration drive that began in March 2026 added 47,077 new voters, while more than 2,000 identity cards remained uncollected. “Elections in Turkana must be safe for women to stand, safe for young people to campaign, and safe for every voter to cast a ballot,” she said.

Hon. Jaldesa said the Commission will document its findings, share the mission report with the group, issue advisories and make referrals where institutions must act, and return to follow up.