Kenyan women earn 30 percent less on average of the wages paid to men doing similar jobs, a new household survey has found, with a lower number also accessing job opportunities in a labour market that remains tilted in favour of males.
The 2022 Demographic and Health Survey published by the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (KNBS) shows that among Kenyans aged 15 and 49, women earn an average of Sh12,166 across different age groups and occupations, compared to an average of Sh18,595 for men.
The gender pay inequality is most pronounced in the 45-49 age group, where on average men out-earn women by Sh11,920 per month—taking home an average of Sh25,586.
In terms of occupations, women working in professional services were top earners in their gender at an average of Sh34,111 per month but were still outearned by men in the same occupation by Sh12,636 a month.
“Average earnings for women (Sh12,166.90) are lower than for men (Sh18,594.90). Women report lower average earnings across all age cohorts relative to males,” said the KNBS.
“The percentage of currently married women aged 15–49 who were employed at any time in the 12 months before the survey was 67 percent and the corresponding percentage for men was 98 percent.”
In-kind earnings
Further, the survey found, the percentage of employed respondents who received earnings in cash was 77 percent for women and 93 percent for men, while 19 percent of employed women compared with four percent of employed men did not receive any cash or in-kind earnings.
Age is also a factor in the amount earned, where those aged between 15 and 24 of both genders earn lower wages compared to older persons.
The highest wage earners among women are those aged between 30 and 34 at Sh15,478 per month, while for men, the 45-49 age group takes home the highest average pay at Sh25,586 per month.
The KNBS conducted the survey between February 17 and July 31, 2022, sampling a total of 42,300 households across all 47 counties.
This is the seventh such survey carried out in Kenya since the initial one in 1989, with the most recent one having been conducted in 2014.
The wage earnings data ties in with the country’s annual gross national income (GNI) per capita, which stood at Sh241,467 last year, equivalent to an average monthly income of Sh20,123 for Kenyans.
GNI tracks all income earned by a country’s people and businesses, from both local and foreign sources.
The measure of average income—which captures money earned from both the formal and the informal sector—however, reveals the deep wealth and earnings inequality in Kenya that has left the country with a thin middle class and super earners with the majority remaining stuck in the lower income bracket.
