Mwanamke Imara: 18 Months of Strengthening Women’s Leadership in Peace and Security Across Kilifi and Kwale Counties

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From mentorship to meaningful action, women are strengthening their role in peacebuilding, community security, and peaceful political participation along Kenya’s Coast.

“The end of an 18-month programme is not the end of the journey; it is the beginning of a stronger generation of women peacebuilders.”

Youth and Women for Peace and Sustainable Development (YOWPSUD) has hosted the final mentorship sessions under the Mwanamke Imara project in Kilifi and Kwale counties, marking the close of an 18-month journey dedicated to strengthening women’s leadership in peacebuilding and Preventing and Countering Violent Extremism.

Implemented with support from the Global Affairs - Canada, through the Canada Counter-Terrorism Capacity Building Program (Mwanamke Imara), and in partnership with Search for Common Ground and Action Life, the initiative has worked to strengthen women’s capacity, participation, and influence within peace and security structures, while fostering collaboration between communities and security institutions.

The final mentorship sessions provided an opportunity to reflect on the journey, recognise progress made, and identify commitments that will sustain the gains beyond the programme period. Across both counties, the sessions demonstrated that strengthening women’s leadership is not only about building individual capacity but also about creating opportunities for women to influence decisions, shape local responses to insecurity, and contribute to sustainable peace.

Strengthening women’s leadership in Kwale County

In Kwale County, the programme’s journey has helped women strengthen their understanding of peacebuilding, engage with leadership platforms, and contribute more actively to community security.

Through mentorship and engagement, women have had opportunities to exercise leadership and participate in conversations addressing peace and security concerns affecting their communities. The programme has also contributed to fostering trust between community members and security actors, creating stronger foundations for cooperation and information sharing.

Improved reporting and emerging inter-county collaboration among security actors are among the encouraging developments associated with the programme. These outcomes demonstrate the importance of building relationships, strengthening community engagement, and creating spaces where women and other community actors can contribute to early identification and response to security concerns.

As the programme concludes, sustaining these relationships and ensuring that women continue to participate meaningfully in peace and security processes will be essential to maintaining the progress achieved.

Advancing a culture of peaceful political participation in Kilifi County

In Kilifi County, the final mentorship session culminated in a significant commitment to sustaining peace through the development of a Peace Charter by women serving in the County Peace Committee.

The charter is intended to provide a framework for engaging aspiring political leaders and encouraging them to commit to observing and promoting peace before, during, and after elections.

This initiative reflects a forward-looking approach to peacebuilding, recognizing that peaceful elections require sustained commitment, responsible leadership, and collective action long before election day. By encouraging political aspirants to uphold peace, the charter seeks to strengthen accountability and promote a culture of non-violence throughout the electoral process.

The initiative also highlights the importance of women’s participation in local peace structures. Beyond being affected by insecurity and political violence, women are increasingly positioning themselves as actors who can influence leadership conduct, promote dialogue, and help prevent conflict within their communities.

The Peace Charter represents an important step towards translating the knowledge and capacities developed through Mwanamke Imara into practical commitments that can continue beyond the programme’s lifespan.

Building on the gains beyond the programme

The close-out of Mwanamke Imara marks the end of a structured 18-month programme, but it also opens a new chapter for the women, institutions, and communities involved.

Experiences from Kilifi and Kwale demonstrate the value of investing in women’s leadership within peace and security structures. From creating platforms for women to exercise leadership and strengthening trust between communities and security actors, to advancing commitments for peaceful elections, the programme has contributed to laying foundations for continued action.

Sustaining these gains will require continued collaboration between women leaders, county peace structures, security institutions, community stakeholders, and other partners. It will also require recognising women not merely as beneficiaries of peacebuilding initiatives but as essential contributors to the decisions and processes that shape safer communities.

For YOWPSUD, the Mwanamke Imara journey reinforces the importance of inclusive approaches to peace and security, approaches that recognise women’s leadership, strengthen community–security relationships, and create opportunities for women to influence the systems around them.

As the programme concludes, its legacy will depend on how these commitments are carried forward, how the relationships established continue to grow, and how women use their strengthened capacities to influence peacebuilding in their communities.

The journey continues. Stronger women leaders, stronger community partnerships, and sustained commitments to peace remain essential to building safer, more inclusive, and resilient communities across Kilifi and Kwale counties.

The Mwanamke Imara project was implemented by YOWPSUD in partnership with Search for Common Ground and Action Life, with support from the Global Affairs Canada through the Canada Counter-Terrorism Capacity Building Program (Mwanamke Imara).

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