Anti-Street Harassment Week 2026: Measuring Progress on SDG 11 and Reclaiming Safe Cities for Girls in Kenya
As Kenya joins the world in observing International Anti-Street Harassment Week (12–18 April 2026), the spotlight turns to one of the clearest measures of whether our cities are truly sustainable and inclusive: SDG 11 Indicator 11.7.2 — the proportion of persons victim of non-sexual or sexual harassment, by sex, age, disability status and place of occurrence, in the previous 12 months.
For far too many girls and young women in Nairobi, Mombasa, Kisumu and other urban centres, this indicator is not an abstract global target. It is lived reality — a daily tax on their freedom, safety and dignity.
The Numbers That Demand Urgent Action
Recent evidence paints a stark picture. A 2025 Johns Hopkins University study on youth in Nairobi revealed that, when measured with a detailed behavioural scale, 70% of young women reported experiencing sexual harassment. This included staring or leering (58%), unwanted comments (54.7%), unwanted touching (39.8–42.2%) and groping or pinching (36.7%). When asked a single direct question, the figure dropped to 33.5%, highlighting how normalisation hides the true scale. More than 40% of the young women surveyed said they feared going out because of the risk of harassment, with public spaces and matatus emerging as primary hotspots.
The 2022 Plan International “Violence in the City” report, covering informal settlements in Nairobi and Kisumu, found that 88–89% of young people aged 15–29 had witnessed or experienced violence or harassment in the previous 12 months. Streets accounted for 49% of incidents, followed by homes. Physical violence was most common, followed by emotional and sexual forms.
Other studies consistently show that 60–80% of women report insults, touching or other forms of harassment while using matatus or waiting at bus stops. These figures align directly with SDG 11 Indicator 11.7.2: women and girls experience disproportionately higher rates than men, especially younger women aged 15–24, those living in informal settlements, and persons with disabilities. The places of occurrence are overwhelmingly public — streets, public transport, markets and workplaces. Underreporting remains widespread because of normalisation, stigma and fear.
Polycom Girls: Turning Statistics into Safe Spaces
At Polycom Girls, these numbers are not abstract data points. For more than 20 years we have worked alongside girls and young women in Kibera and surrounding informal settlements. Our Safe City initiatives, Talking Boxes for anonymous reporting of violence, consent education programmes and community safe spaces exist precisely because harassment and sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV) continue to restrict girls’ ability to move freely, attend school, or live with dignity.
We see the fear every day — the way girls alter their routes, clothing and schedules simply to reach school or the market. We also see the resilience: young people we support who document incidents anonymously through the SafeCity App, a crowdsourced platform that maps harassment and abuse in public spaces. The app records thousands of reports globally, including from Kenyan cities, showing pervasive daily experiences of verbal harassment, unwanted touching/groping, staring/leering and catcalling in public transport, streets, bus stops and markets.
Progressive Policies — But Implementation Gaps Remain
Kenya has a strong policy foundation. The National Policy for the Prevention and Response to Gender-Based Violence (2014, revised 2021) defines GBV broadly to include sexual harassment and calls for multi-sectoral prevention, protection, response services and safer public spaces — with explicit attention to urban settings and public transport.
The Sexual Offences Act (2006) criminalises sexual harassment, indecent acts and assault in public spaces. Article 29 of the Constitution of Kenya 2010 guarantees freedom and security of the person, including the right not to be subjected to violence from any source. The National Policy on Gender and Development (2019) supports gender mainstreaming in urban planning and infrastructure. County-level efforts, such as Machakos County’s Public Transport Sexual Harassment and GBV Policy, and the #MyDressMyChoice campaign that led to the criminalisation of forcible stripping (punishable by up to 10 years in prison), show that change is possible.
Yet implementation remains weak, especially in informal settlements and on public transport. Gender desks exist in some police stations, POLICARE centres operate in certain areas, and occasional crackdowns on matatu operators take place — but enforcement is poor. Reporting rates are often below 10%, and only about 1% of reported public-transport harassment cases result in perpetrators being apprehended. Funding falls far short of the committed USD 5 million annual target. Programmes are fragmented, and gender-responsive urban planning is still largely absent from most county integrated development plans. Hotspots — poorly lit streets, overcrowded matatus and unsafe bus stops in Nairobi, Mombasa and Kisumu — have seen little meaningful improvement.
What Real Change Looks Like
We at Polycom Girls believe these policies are progressive on paper, but they mean very little without full, resourced and community-led implementation. Sustainable progress on SDG 11 Indicator 11.7.2 requires:
- Gender-responsive urban planning with better lighting and safe public transport (trained crew, clear reporting mechanisms and CCTV);
- Dedicated budgets for prevention and response;
- Meaningful participation of girls and women from informal settlements in city planning;
- Stronger accountability for perpetrators;
- Scaled-up community safe spaces and consent education programmes.
During this Anti-Street Harassment Week, we call on national and county governments, transport authorities, development partners and communities to move beyond awareness to concrete, measurable action. We will continue feeding local data into the SafeCity App, running consent workshops, and advocating for the full implementation of existing policies.
Because safer cities are not a luxury — they are a right. When the proportion of girls and young women experiencing harassment finally declines, it will not be just another improved SDG statistic. It will mean girls in Kibera and across Kenya can walk to school, board a matatu, or simply move through their city without fear.
That is the freedom we are fighting for — this week and every week.