Women still have a chance of bagging at least 50 per cent of Chief Administrative Secretary (CAS) positions despite constituting only a third of the shortlist.
A total of 5,185 Kenyans, 33 per cent of whom were women, applied for the CAS position.
Some 86 women – 35 per cent – are among 240 candidates set to be interviewed by the Public Service Commission (PSC) in Nairobi between March 1 and March 7. Of the 1,709 women who applied, 1,623 did not make it to the shortlist.
It is not clear how many CASs President William Ruto will appoint, though sources say he might appoint 23. He is expected to unveil the names of chief administrative secretaries next month, after receiving a report from the PSC.
Prof Suda served as Education CAS and University Education and Research and Gender PS during the Jubilee administration.
Ms Odhiambo retired in August 2019 as the country’s first Controller of Budget under the current Constitution, having served her eight-year non-renewable term. In 2020, she was appointed as the chairperson of the board of the National Transport and Safety Authority.
Nairobi, Kiambu and Meru lead by having four women each on the shortlist, while Bomet, Isiolo, Turkana, Siaya and Machakos have three each.
A detailed analysis shows the women shortlisted are spread across 42 counties, hence increasing their chances of success as regional and ethnic balance is one of the considerations.
The women are also banking on Dr Ruto’s pre-election pledge to appoint women in his government on a 50-50 basis.
The Head of State was given the green light to appoint, after the Employment and Labour Relations Court threw out a case that was challenging the legality of the position.
Dismissing the Law Society of Kenya’s petition to declare the position illegal, Justice Monicah Mbaru noted that the PSC followed the requisite legal procedure in its bid to establish the office, taking steps such as inviting public views.
