In a spirited classroom exchange, Kenyan teens confront tradition, challenge inequality, and remind us that gender roles at home are anything but settled.
At Drumvale Secondary School on the eastern edge of Nairobi, a debate over who gets to decide what happens at home offered a rare glimpse into how deeply entrenched, and increasingly challenged, gender roles are in Kenyan society.
As part of the Educated Futures Programme’s second term curriculum on Gender and Identity, students were invited to interrogate the motion: Do Gender Roles in the Household Promote Inequality? The classroom quickly became a microcosm of broader societal tensions. With curiosity and candour, the teens waded into a subject often considered too delicate for polite conversation, let alone school syllabi.
Nanjala and Kibet (not their real names) both 15, led the arguments. Kibet, taking a traditionalist stance, argued that “men, as providers, naturally bear the right to lead.” In his view, economic provision confers authority, a belief mirrored in many Kenyan households, where nearly 60% of families still report male heads as sole decision-makers, according to the 2022 Kenya Demographic and Health Survey.
Nanjala offered a sharp rebuttal. “Many women provide just as much, emotionally, physically, financially, yet they remain voiceless in household decisions,” she said. Her argument resonated with recent findings by UN Women, which note that despite increasing female labour force participation in Kenya (currently at over 50%), women still shoulder over three times more unpaid domestic labour than men.
The debate unfolded with unusual poise. Some students backed Kibet, citing the pressure men face to provide in an economy where the youth unemployment rate stands at 67%, disproportionately affecting young men. Others echoed Nanjala’s point, highlighting the invisible labour women perform; managing homes, caring for family, and offering emotional support, often without recognition or shared authority.
Rather than polarising the classroom, the discussion revealed a more nuanced reality: young people are questioning inherited roles and negotiating their place within shifting gender dynamics. There was no declared winner. But that, perhaps, was the point.
The session is part of our work at Youth Educated,where we are seeking to promote holistic education in Kenyan schools. Through guided discussions, students think critically about the world they live in, and also learn how to listen and engage constructively. Beyond ideological positions, the exercise is meant to develop empathy, articulation, and a shared recognition that the path to gender equity, amongst other societal issues, is complex and deeply personal.