An out-of-school teenage girl in Kenya is 12 times more likely to experience early pregnancy compared to her counterpart who remains in school, a new report on gender equality in education has revealed.
The findings are contained in the “State of Gender Equality in Our Basic Education” report released by Usawa Agenda, a Kenyan-based and African-led civil society organisation advocating for equity and equality in education.
“No child is more disadvantaged than a girl out of school,” the report states.
“An out-of-school teenage girl is 12 times as likely as her in-school counterpart to suffer early pregnancy,” it adds.
The report paints a troubling picture of inequalities affecting access to education in Kenya, particularly among girls, children living with disabilities, refugees and children from disadvantaged households.
The study, conducted in June and July 2025, covered all 47 counties and involved extensive household and school visits aimed at assessing the state of education and gender equality across the country.
Researchers visited 2,056 enumeration areas and surveyed 41,156 households, reaching a total of 81,074 children and assessing 49,835 eligible learners.
The assessment focused on children aged between 10 and 15 years, both in and out of school, as well as learners in Grades 3 to 9 aged up to 17 years.
In addition, researchers visited 1,527 public and private primary and comprehensive schools and 1,194 senior schools. School heads and principals were interviewed, while KCSE examination results and entry marks for more than 137,000 candidates from the sampled schools were also collected and analysed.
The report found that nationally, more boys than girls are out of school. However, the trend changes sharply within refugee communities, where girls are more likely to miss out on education opportunities.
According to the findings, the most vulnerable age groups among Kenyan children are those aged between four and five years and those between 13 and 17 years.
Among refugee children, those aged between four and five years and six to 12 years are at the highest risk of being out of school.
Researchers also established a strong link between household characteristics and school attendance.
Children living in female-headed households were found to be more likely to be out of school nationally.
However, among refugee communities, children from male-headed households faced a higher likelihood of being excluded from education.
The study further revealed that parental education levels play a significant role in determining whether a child attends school.
“A child in a household headed by an adult without formal education is almost 10 times as likely to be out of school as his or her counterpart in a household headed by at least a degree holder,” the report states.
The findings also highlighted the impact of disability on school attendance.
According to the report, boys with disabilities are marginally more likely to be out of school than girls with disability. Children living with mental disabilities were identified as the group most likely to be excluded from learning altogether.
The report called for stronger interventions targeting vulnerable groups, especially girls, children with disabilities and refugee communities, to ensure equal access to quality education.
Researchers also noted the critical role religious institutions continue to play in supporting education in Kenya.
“Religious institutions are key actors in development and support of the education sector,” the report said.
Interestingly, the findings showed that girls’ senior schools are more likely to receive sponsorship from religious organisations compared to boys’ schools.
Usawa Agenda said the findings should guide policymakers, education stakeholders and development partners in designing targeted interventions aimed at reducing inequalities and ensuring all children have access to education regardless of gender, disability or social background.
