Management Response

: Kenya
: 2023 - 2025 , Kenya (CO)
: End-line evaluation for the KOICA-funded WEE-CSA Programme 2020 -2024
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: Kenya
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Overall, the findings of the evaluation, the recommendations, the good practices, and the lessons learned are considered critical towards informing the programming work of UN Women Kenya Country Office and the ESAR region. The findings of the evaluation are drawn from different stakeholders, including Korea International Cooperation Agency (donor); the county Government of Kenya; UN Women; UN agencies; Implementing Partners; and the project beneficiaries. An Evaluation Reference Group reviewed, confirmed and validated the findings of the study and approved the proposed recommendations.

: Approved
Recommendation: Support counties in the development of policy, legal, and institutional frameworks to foster gender equality and climate change mitigation in the allocation of resources towards climate-smart agriculture.
Management Response: UN Women accepts the recommendation to continue supporting counties in the development of related policy, legal, and institutional frameworks- to foster gender equality and climate change mitigation and increase the allocation of resources towards climate-smart agriculture. UN Women will seek to continue having field-based presence/ officers, for example in West Pokot, Kitui and Laikipia counties, to work closely together with County Governments and implementing partners, and to continue influencing gender responsive policy development and implementation, including allocation of resources, for climate smart agriculture as part of county development processes.
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Description:
Management Response Category: Accepted
Thematic Area: Women economic empowerment (SPs before 2018)
Operating Principles: Capacity development, Knowledge management
Organizational Priorities: Partnership, Climate change, Agriculture
UNEG Criteria: Sustainability
Key Actions
Responsible Deadline Status Comments
UN Women Field Officers to continue working closely together with implementing partners and County Governments to enable UN Women to influence gender responsive policy development and implementation. WEE Team Lead and Deputy Country Representative 2025/02 Completed Field Officers working in Laikipia and West Pokot have worked closely together with the County Government, both during the project as well as ever since.
Recommendation: Invest in changing attitudes and practices as well as breaking down harmful practices that fuel gender inequality and GBV in order to enable accelerated participation of women in economic activities.
Management Response: UN Women accepts the recommendation. UN Women is currently implementing a project to support the development of a National Care Policy. The project recognizes that patriarchal attitudes and practices regarding unpaid care, domestic work, and unequal distribution form major barriers to women’s participation in economic activities, impedes women’s autonomy in political and social spheres and hampers women’s and girls’ overall well-being. The Policy is currently under the approval process. UN Women will continue its partnership with the three implementing partners from the WEE CSA project in the same three counties through the above noted project (Kitui, Laikipia, and West Pokot) and employ strategies to work towards changing harmful attitudes and practices for the attainment of Gender Equality and particularly increase participation of women in economic activities.
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Description:
Management Response Category: Accepted
Thematic Area: Women economic empowerment (SPs before 2018)
Operating Principles: Capacity development, Advocacy, Knowledge management, Promoting inclusiveness/Leaving no one behind
Organizational Priorities: Climate change, Agriculture, Partnership
UNEG Criteria: Human Rights, Gender equality
Key Actions
Responsible Deadline Status Comments
UN Women to develop and implement projects that support gender equality to enable accelerated participation of women in economic activities. WEE-Team Lead and Deputy Country Representative 2025/12 Initiated Implementation of the National Care Policy project is underway, and the policy is in the approval process. UN Women is supporting the development of a National Care Policy that will provide a framework to guide the implementation of interventions in the care sector and the economy in Kenya.
UN Women to continue its partnership with the three IPs in the three WEE-CSA implementing locations (Kitui, Laikipia, and West Pokot) and employ strategies towards changing harmful attitudes and practices for the attainment of Gender Equality. WEE-Team lead and Deputy Country Representative 2025/12 Initiated UN Women has signed agreements with three IPs (Village Enterprise, Anglican Development Services Eastern, Hand in Hand) to implement in the three counties. Implementation of the project is ongoing.
Recommendation: Develop an effective knowledge management system and function for each project so as to manage data and information amenable to monitoring and evaluation of the project .
Management Response: UN Women accepts this recommendation. UN Women is in the process of systematizing the monitoring processes through the implementation of the Programme Partner Monitoring Policy. UN Women will adapt systematic knowledge management approaches that include comprehensive record keeping for each partner including on risk management, best practices, lessons learnt to manage data and information amenable to monitoring and evaluation of the project. The Communications Unit in KCO is furthermore overall responsible for improving the knowledge management practices in the Office, working closely together with the M&E unit.
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Description:
Management Response Category: Accepted
Thematic Area: Women economic empowerment (SPs before 2018)
Operating Principles: Knowledge management, Evidence, Data and statistics
Organizational Priorities: Operational activities, Organizational efficiency
UNEG Criteria: Effectiveness
Key Actions
Responsible Deadline Status Comments
KCO M&E team will in Q1 socialize the KCO Office staff on the (i) Monitoring of Programme Partners Procedure and its templates; (ii) risk management and mitigation strategies including through capacity building of partners. M&E Team Lead and Deputy Country Representative 2025/05 Initiated
Recommendation: Support extension services, climate change information, market information and market linkages supply and credit services to women.
Management Response: UN Women accepts the recommendation. UN Women continues to have field-based presence/ officers in West Pokot and Laikipia even after the WEE CSA project ended. The Field Officers will continue to enhance our relationship with the implementing partners and County Governments, as well as provide technical guidance on extension services, climate change, markets and market linkages, supply and credit services to women.
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Description:
Management Response Category: Accepted
Thematic Area: Women economic empowerment (SPs before 2018)
Operating Principles: Capacity development
Organizational Priorities: Climate change, Agriculture, Partnership
UNEG Criteria: Sustainability
Key Actions
Responsible Deadline Status Comments
UN Women to maintain field-based colleagues in West Pokot and Laikipia counties (depending on availability of funding), and through Nairobi based staff, continue working closely together with implementing partners and County Governments as well as providing technical support and information on extension services, climate change, markets and credit services to women. WEE- Team Lead and Deputy Country Representative 2025/12 Initiated UN Women has field-based presence in West Pokot and Laikipia, which continue to provide guidance and support to county government, implementing partners and the communities.
Recommendation: Build the capacity of women's leadership skills to enable them to effectively participate in economic decisions at the household and government level.
Management Response: UN Women accepts the recommendation. As part of its holistic approach, UN Women KCO will continue to integrate leadership modules across its programmes. UN Women will continue its partnership with the three IPs in the three WEE-CSA implementing locations (Kitui, Laikipia, and West Pokot) and employ strategies to strengthen women's leadership skills to enable them to effectively being able to participate in the planning and decision making at the household, community and government level.
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Description:
Management Response Category: Accepted
Thematic Area: Women economic empowerment (SPs before 2018)
Operating Principles: Capacity development
Organizational Priorities: Partnership
UNEG Criteria: Effectiveness
Key Actions
Responsible Deadline Status Comments
As part of the Care project, UN Women to continue its partnership with the three WEE CSA IPs in the three WEE CSA counties (Kitui, Laikipia, and West Pokot) to build on previous efforts and results. UN Women and its implementing partners will continue to train women on leadership skills so that they can effectively engage in and influence planning and decision-making at the household, community and county level. WEE- Team Lead and Deputy Country Representative 2025/12 Initiated UN Women has signed agreements with the three IPs and implementation of the project is ongoing.
Recommendation: Build the absorptive and adaptive capacity through widening the asset base of communities and households to strengthen their resilience to climate and even economic shocks and prevent erosion of gains made
Management Response: UN Women accepts this recommendation. UN Women has over the past couple of years built the capacity of communities and households to strengthen their resilience to climate change and economic shocks. This has been done through the WEE CSA as well as the National Care Policy project, implemented with the same three partners in the same counties (Kitui, Laikipia, and West Pokot). Going forward, UN Women KCO will continue to train beneficiaries on how to effectively participate in planning and economic decision-making at the household, community and government engagement level. Through field-based officers in West Pokot and Laikipia, UN Women will also continue to mentor and train the beneficiaries on how to participate in and influence gender responsive policy development and implementation, including budget allocation, for initiatives that build their resilience to climate and economic shocks. During the development of new projects, UN Women will utilize the lessons and recommendation to widen the asset base for future interventions.
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Description:
Management Response Category: Accepted
Thematic Area: Women economic empowerment (SPs before 2018)
Operating Principles: Capacity development
Organizational Priorities: Climate change, Partnership, Agriculture
UNEG Criteria: Sustainability
Key Actions
Responsible Deadline Status Comments
Through its collaboration with three implementing partners, UN Women will train and mentor beneficiaries to further increase their resilience to climate change and economic chocks. KCO will incorporate lessons and recommendations in future programming as well. WEE Team Lead, Deputy Country Representative. 2025/02 Completed WEE unit successfully onboarded the three WEE-CSA implementing partners who are currently training and mentoring beneficiaries.
Recommendation: Enhance the participation of PLWD in line with the Leave No One Behind (LNOB) principle through budgeting and providing for their special needs such as transport, assistive devices, and helpers.
Management Response: UN Women accepts this recommendation. UN Women has continued to enhance the participation of persons with disabilities in line with the Leave No One Behind (LNOB) principle. Through a different project - National Care Policy - UN Women has continued its partnership with the three implementing partners in the three WEE-CSA implementing locations (Kitui, Laikipia, and West Pokot) and is engaging the 107 groups (9% Persons with disabilities) supported through the WEE-CSA project. The implementing partners are utilizing strategies that have been proven to work to ensure high participation including through targeted budgeting and by providing for their special needs such as transport, and inclusion of their helpers in the groups. During the development of new projects, UN Women will utilize the lessons and recommendation to ensure intentional planning and budgeting for disability inclusion.
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Description:
Management Response Category: Accepted
Thematic Area: Women economic empowerment (SPs before 2018)
Operating Principles: Promoting inclusiveness/Leaving no one behind
Organizational Priorities: Operational activities
UNEG Criteria: Sustainability, Human Rights
Key Actions
Responsible Deadline Status Comments
Through implementation of the Care project, UN Women together with three implementing partners in the three WEE-CSA implementing locations (Kitui, Laikipia, and West Pokot) will continue to intentionally engage and budget for disability inclusion. This will ensure continuity as the IPs will engage the 107 groups (9% persons with disabilities) supported through the WEE-CSA project. WEE unit Team lead and Deputy Country Representative. 2025/06 Initiated The project is ongoing
Recommendation: Increase investments in climate-smart agriculture technologies for expansive and intensive gains on agricultural productivity, income, reduced poverty and food insecurity
Management Response: UN Women partly accepts this recommendation. UN Women in partnership with FAO had developed a second phase proposal for the WEE-CSA project which had included increased investments in climate-smart agriculture technologies for expansive and intensive gains on agricultural productivity, income, reduced poverty and food insecurity. The proposal was however not funded. UN Women will utilize this recommendation during the development of new projects.
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Description:
Management Response Category: Partially Accepted
Thematic Area: Women economic empowerment (SPs before 2018)
Operating Principles: Capacity development
Organizational Priorities: Operational activities
UNEG Criteria: Relevance
Key Actions
Responsible Deadline Status Comments
UN Women to actively draw on findings and recommendations from the DiD evaluation and incorporate related actions in upcoming proposals. WEE Team Lead, Deputy Country Representative. 2025/12 Initiated
Recommendation: After the project completion, plan to undertake a sustainability evaluation to deeply understand what happens when a project comes to a closure
Management Response: UN Women partly accepts this recommendation. Depending on availability of funds, UN Women will seek to budget for the undertaking on sustainability studies/analysis or evaluations for all interventions. As per project/programme evaluation TORs, KCO always seeks to cover sustainability as a key aspect. This will continuously be done. For the WEE CSA project, this was not budgeted for and therefore unfortunately not possible to do.
More detail
Description:
Management Response Category: Partially Accepted
Thematic Area: Women economic empowerment (SPs before 2018)
Operating Principles: Knowledge management
Organizational Priorities: Operational activities
UNEG Criteria: Sustainability
Key Actions
Responsible Deadline Status Comments
During the development of future projects, UN Women will plan to undertake a sustainability analysis or evaluation to deeply understand what happens when a project comes to a closure WEE unit Team lead and Deputy Country Representative. 2025/06 Initiated Sustainability aspects are currently captured through terminal evaluations. For the WEE CSA project there was no budget available for such an additional study.
Recommendation: Ensure that for every project, a review of procurement requirements is done so as to clearly anticipate and plan for the timely delivery of project items and elements that may take time to obtain for example assets that are to be transferred to the community for development purposes.
Management Response: UN Women partly accepts the recommendation. UN Women implemented the project jointly with FAO who was responsible for all project related procurement. UN Women and FAO will in future ensure to review all procurement requirements to clearly anticipate and plan for the timely delivery of project items.
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Description:
Management Response Category: Partially Accepted
Thematic Area: Women economic empowerment (SPs before 2018)
Operating Principles: Internal coordination and communication
Organizational Priorities: Operational activities
UNEG Criteria: Effectiveness, Efficiency, Relevance
Key Actions
Responsible Deadline Status Comments
UN Women will continue to utilize Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) tools including RMS, Oracle, and Quantum which enable tracking of progress on implementation plans and resources allocated to projects. Further, a robust Monitoring and Evaluation system will continue being applied to capture field monitoring visits, regular meeting with the partners and tracking project results through reviewing quarterly partner reports. Corrective actions will be undertaken for slower that planned progress. WEE unit Team lead, Head of Programme, Operatiosn Manager 2025/02 Completed UN Women KCO is regularly and thoroughly utilizing the available systems and processes to plan, monitor and report on progress.
UN Women and FAO will in future ensure to review all procurement requirements to clearly anticipate and plan for the timely delivery of project items. WEE unit Team lead and Deputy Country Representative. and FAO team lead. 2025/06 Initiated