Center’s shadow letter to the CEDAW Committee on Kenya

In December 2010, the Center submitted a shadow letter to the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW Committee) on the situation of reproductive rights of women and adolescents in Kenya. Kenya reported to the CEDAW Committee during its 48th session in January 2011. The shadow letter highlights the country’s high rates of maternal mortality as well as the fact that illegal and unsafe abortions are a leading cause of maternal death in Kenya. The letter also addressed high rates of violence against women, sexual abuse against girls in schools and the continuing practice of female genital mutilation.