Kenya hosts first National Menopause Conference to break stigma and shape policy » Capital News

NAIROBI, Aug 20 — Silence, stigma and neglect are leaving millions of Kenyan women unprepared for menopause, speakers warned at Kenya’s first-ever National Menopause Conference held Wednesday at the Radisson Blu Hotel, Nairobi.

Under the theme “The Pause that Speaks: Voices, Policy and Action,” the forum brought together women with lived experience, health experts, policymakers, civil society and private-sector leaders to kick-start a national conversation and build a policy framework for menopause care and support.

Supreme Court Judge Njoki Ndung’u shared her personal journey, recalling memory lapses and health scares that left her searching for answers. “Doctors themselves are often not trained to prepare women for this stage of life,” she said. “Menopause is not just a medical issue — it affects families, workplaces and society. It’s time we normalise it, as we did maternal health.”

Suba North MP and National Assembly Minority Party Whip Millie Odhiambo pressed for legal and workplace protections: “Our Constitution guarantees equality, dignity and fair labour practices. These must extend to women experiencing menopause.”

From the health system side, Dr Edward Serem, Head of the Division of Reproductive and Maternal Health, called the scale of underinvestment “staggering,” noting that only 4% of health budgets go to women’s health issues. He warned of a “1,300% gap” between current allocations and actual needs, adding: “Most facilities are not equipped to manage menopause properly, and treatment remains unaffordable for many.”

Setting the tone for action, ICRW Africa Director Evelyne Opondo urged courage over silence: “This is the beginning of a new relationship between policy and practice, between commitment and action.” Nelly Munyasia, Executive Director of the Reproductive Health Network Kenya (RHNK), said many women face the transition “without information or support,” fuelling stigma, isolation and suffering.

Co-organised by ICRW Africa and RHNK, the conference will feed into Kenya’s first National Menopause Policy White Paper, laying groundwork for improved clinical care pathways, workplace policies and social support systems.