Location: Nairobi, Kisumu & Kakamega Counties.
About Coalition on Violence Against Women (COVAW)
Coalition on Violence against Women (COVAW) is a national non-profit women’s rights organization in Kenya founded in 1995 as a response to the silence of the Kenyan society in addressing Violence Against Women and Girls (VAWG). COVAW is committed to advancing women’s rights and works towards achieving a society free from all forms of VAWG.
COVAW’s interventions deliberately address norms, attitudes, laws, policies, and practices that affect women’s and girls’ safety and well-being in general. This is achieved through the implementation of gender progressive practices and supporting the development of regulatory and institutional frameworks. Additionally, we foster consistent engagement of regulatory and institutional responses to violence against women and girls (VAWG) and advocate for accountability in the handling of perpetrators. Our key stakeholders are the community, civil society, government, and private sector.
Project Description
COVAW, in partnership with World University Service of Canada (WUSC) and Women’s Legal Resources Centre (WOLREC) from Malawi, is implementing the Action for Paid Childcare Sector Transformation (ACT) project, a four-year initiative aimed at transforming the paid childcare sector in Kenya and Malawi. The project seeks to elevate paid childcare from a job of last resort to a desirable and economically empowering vocation of choice for women.
ACT project adopts a gender-transformative, systems-based approach to catalyze locally driven and collaborative actions. It focuses on supporting women paid childcare providers, including those running or working in childcare microenterprises, domestic childcare workers, and women in private or public childcare centers. Emphasis is placed on caregivers serving children aged 0-5, with project implementation in Nairobi, Kisumu, and Kakamega counties in Kenya, and Lilongwe and Blantyre districts in Malawi.
COVAW’s key role in the partnership focuses on:
- Promoting awareness and support for the rights of women paid childcare providers to ensure dignity, recognition, and equity in the sector.
- Strengthening Coordination among women paid childcare providers.
- Advocating for gender-transformative childcare policy and regulatory reforms to create an enabling environment for women paid childcare providers.
- Facilitating Gender Responsive Training and Certification among women paid childcare providers.
Background: COVAW’s Access to Justice Strategic Area
Access to Justice is a core strategic focus for COVAW, which has consistently provided legal support to survivors of sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV). This strategic area seeks to enhance the availability and accessibility of appropriate legal services for women and girls who experience violence.
Under the ACT project, COVAW aims to strengthen access to justice for paid childcare providers in Kisumu, Kakamega, and Nairobi, many of whom are women working in informal, low-income settings.
These women and girls often face heightened vulnerability to SGBV, worsened by limited financial means and a lack of legal representation. Through the project, economically disadvantaged survivors will be supported to pursue justice, including through access to legal representation.
Situational Analysis
Women and girls working in the paid childcare sector, including those employed in Early Childhood Development (ECD) centers, daycare facilities, and home-based childcare, face heightened risks of sexual & gender-based violence (SGBV), particularly in informal urban settlements. Although physical proximity to police stations and courts may be less of a challenge compared to rural areas, survivors still encounter numerous structural and systemic barriers that discourage reporting and hinder access to justice.
A significant driver of underreporting among paid childcare workers is the pervasive social stigma associated with SGBV. With the demographic profile of the paid childcare sector being dominated by young and low-income women, they often fear being blamed or shamed by their communities, employers, or even family members. In home-based and informal childcare settings, where workers frequently operate in isolation without formal protection or oversight, this fear is intensified by the threat of retaliation from perpetrators, who may be employers or members of the household where the abuse occurs.
Deep mistrust in the justice system remains a key inhibitor in the pursuit of justice for these target groups. As a result, many cases go unreported, depriving survivors of the justice and support they deserve and obscuring the true scale of SGBV within the paid childcare sector.
To address these challenges, COVAW seeks partnership with pro bono advocates who will support our access to justice component in the implementation of the ACT project. These advocates will play a critical role in offering legal services to survivors of SGBV in the paid childcare sector.
Requirements and Qualifications
The prospective candidates should: –
- Be an advocate of the High Court of Kenya with a valid practicing certificate.
- Be a member of the Law Society of Kenya in their respective branch.
- Be passionate in providing pro bono legal services to survivors of sexual and gender-based violence to ensure access to justice.
- Have at least two (2) years of experience in litigation post-admission, preferably on human rights issues.
- Physically based in Nairobi, Kisumu & Kakamega.
Duties and responsibilities.
- Provide comprehensive legal advice and representation to COVAW SGBV clients
- Ensure court attendance for the matters assigned. Send monthly reports to COVAW on case progress.
- Ensure communication with clients on the progress of their case, and especially notify them of key hearing dates when their attendance is required.
- Liaise with COVAW’s Access to Justice Programme Officer- Legal for further assistance and support regarding the cases.
- Ensure that matters are dealt with utmost confidentiality, respect, and non-discrimination.
- Liaise with key justice actors (judiciary, prosecutors, police) to ensure the matters are expedited and given priority.
- Ready and willing to offer pro bono services as and when called upon to do so by COVAW.
- Adhere to COVAW values and ethical standards.
Benefits to our Pro-bono Advocates
- Opportunities for service and enhancement of access to justice for Survivors of SGBV, especially women and girls in marginalized communities.
- Capacity building opportunities.
- Opportunities for personal growth and development on human rights and SGBV programming through exposure to various trainings.
- Networking opportunities
- A modest stipend for the pro bono legal services.
Reporting
The Pro-bono Advocates will report to the Programme Officer- Legal, Access to Justice.
Application Process
Interested candidates are required to submit their applications via email to recruit@covaw.or.ke with a cover letter and a copy of their curriculum vitae in one PDF document by 24th June 2025 with the subject line and preferred location i.e; “Pro Bono Advocates -ACT project, Kisumu” or“Pro Bono Advocates -ACT project, Kakamega” or “Pro Bono Advocates -ACT project, Nairobi”, depending on location of interest.
Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis.