Dr Jennifer Riria Addressing Media at Echo Network Africa Offices, Urges Calm, Justice and National Dialogue
By Peace Muthoka
Nairobi, January 30, 2026 – Echo Network Africa, together with the African Women Leadership Network Kenya Chapter and the Democracy Trust Fund, says Kenya has reached a turning point. According to the women, the decisions taken now will either steady the nation or push it further into division and distrust.
“A safe and growing Kenya is good for all,” Dr Jennifer Riria said as she read the statement on behalf of women across the country. She spoke not as a distant advocate, but as a mother, a leader and a citizen deeply concerned about the direction Kenya is taking.
At the centre of the women’s message was security. Across the country, they said, violence has crept into spaces that once felt protected. When unrest breaks out, it rarely spares the vulnerable. Instead, it finds children on their way to school, women going about their daily work and persons with disabilities who often have nowhere to run.
“When violence erupts, it is mainly children, women, persons with disabilities and other vulnerable groups who suffer the most,” Dr Riria said.
Her words grew heavier as she recalled recent incidents where worshippers were teargassed and shot at inside a church. For many Kenyans, churches remain places of refuge and healing. Seeing them violated, she said, reopened painful memories of the country’s darkest chapters.
“Kenyans cannot afford to go back to the 2007/2008 days,” she warned. “Places of worship are sacred. They are safe spaces. Attacking them shows a deep breakdown of civility.”
Those incidents, the women said, have left communities shaken. Fear lingers, anger simmers and trust continues to thin.
“Kenyans are angry, and so are the women,” Dr Riria said plainly. Even so, the women insisted that outrage alone will not heal the country. While they welcomed swift condemnation from churches and civil society, they said the real test lies with institutions mandated to protect citizens.
“We want more vigilance and sincerity from law enforcement, the NCIC, the ODPP and all duty bearers,” she said. “Arrest perpetrators. Prosecute them. Follow the rule of law.”
From insecurity on the streets, the women turned to rising hostility in public leadership. They expressed deep disappointment over recent verbal attacks directed at Education Cabinet Secretary Julius Ogamba and Principal Secretary Bitok, saying leaders must remember that their conduct shapes the nation’s values.
“Leaders must model respectful dialogue,” Dr Riria said. “Shouting and bickering are not just ill manners. They also set a bad example for our children.”
For the women, respectful dialogue is not optional.“We insist that dialogue must not just be a way, but the only way,” she said.
Again and again, the women returned to a simple truth: insecurity eventually reaches everyone.“None of us is safe until every single one of us is safe,” Dr Riria said. “Violence begets violence. A breakdown of law and order hurts us all.”
Beyond security, the statement turned to another anxiety weighing heavily on many households education. Mothers and caregivers, the women said, now lie awake worrying about school fees, placements and whether their children will move forward or be left behind under the Competency-Based Education system.
They pointed to low transition rates from Grade 9 to Grade 10, confusing placement processes, overstretched infrastructure and the rising cost of schooling. Together, these challenges have pushed education further out of reach for thousands of families.
“Education is becoming inaccessible to the majority of Kenyans,” Dr Riria said. “This is unacceptable.”
She urged the government to act with urgency and care, warning against turning children into experiments. “The education of our children is way too important to gamble with,” she said.
The women proposed practical solutions grounded in everyday realities. They called for all bursaries to be merged into one basket to ease financial strain, faster retraining of teachers, expanded infrastructure and reduced uniform costs for parents already stretched thin.
“The right to education is anchored in our Constitution,” Dr Riria said. “Every child must access education, regardless of background.”
They welcomed President William Ruto’s directive that all learners transition from Junior School to Senior School. However, they noted that many children, especially those from extremely poor homes, are still missing from classrooms.
“No child should be left behind,” Dr Riria said. Amid frustration and concern, the women paused to highlight stories of hope that continue to surface across the country. In Kisii County, women traders from Kiboi Market quietly raised more than KSh80,000 to help an orphaned girl, Frida, return to school. To the women, the gesture captured the true spirit of Kenyan womanhood.
“This shatters the myth that women are their own enemies,” Dr Riria said. “Nothing could be further from the truth.”
She also spoke of police officers in Nandi County who stepped in to support vulnerable learners, small acts that carried deep meaning.
“That spirit built this nation,” she said. “It will carry us through again.”
On gender-based violence, the women welcomed the report by the Presidential Technical Working Group led by Dr Nancy Baraza, describing it as a long-overdue milestone.
“This is the first time a President has prioritized GBV in this way,” Dr Riria said. They strongly supported the recommendation to declare GBV a national disaster and urged President Ruto to personally lead the fight.
“We will stand solidly behind H.E. the President in the war against GBV,” she said. “Until all Kenyans, especially girls and women, are safe.”
Looking ahead, the women pledged to play their part. They committed to supporting national safety efforts, creating spaces for intergenerational conversations and pushing for full implementation of the GBV recommendations.
“There is no room for scapegoating,” Dr Riria said. “We will play our part. Others must do the same.”
Still, she reminded the nation that leadership carries the heaviest responsibility. “As Harry Truman said, ‘the buck stops here,’” Dr Riria said. “We could not agree more.”
