Legislation for advancing women’s leadership in the health sector in Kenya: Identifying ways to strengthen legal environments for gender equality

There is evidence that legal measures can have a positive impact on women’s economic opportunities and financial security. While equality of opportunity in the workplace is contingent upon a range of factors, the law plays a critical role upon which the systems and structures for equality within (and outside) the workplace rest. The 2023 World Bank’s Women, Business and Law (WBL) review found that, on average, globally, a woman has three-quarters of the legal rights of men in the domains it assesses, that is, mobility, workplace, pay, marriage, parenthood, entrepreneurship, assets and pensions. Such legal discrimination inhibits equal labour force participation of women and deprives women of leadership opportunities at the workplace, including in the health sector.