A single decimal point separated the top two: Moi University has been ranked the best public institution in Kenya at building gender equality into its work, finishing just 0.1 percentage points ahead of Maasai Mara University in a national evaluation of 86 ministries, departments and agencies.

Moi University posted an average score of 96.4 per cent in the Performance Evaluation on Gender Mainstreaming for the 2025/2026 financial year, according to results from the State Department for Gender Affairs and Affirmative Action reported by Citizen Digital and The Eastleigh Voice. Maasai Mara University came second with 96.3 per cent.

How the top ten finished

  • Moi University: 96.4 per cent
  • Maasai Mara University: 96.3 per cent
  • Higher Education Loans Board (HELB) and Kibabii University, tied third: 94.8 per cent each
  • Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA): 94.7 per cent
  • Kenyatta University: 94.2 per cent
  • South Eastern Kenya University (SEKU): 92.5 per cent
  • Karumo Technical Training Institute: 90.3 per cent
  • University of Kabianga: 89.6 per cent
  • Wildlife Research and Training Institute (WRTI): 89.4 per cent

Moi University scored 96.5 per cent in the first half of the year and 96.2 per cent in the second, keeping its lead through both assessments.

What was measured

The rankings were based on biannual performance reports that each institution submitted to the State Department for Gender Affairs and Affirmative Action. Institutions were scored on whether they:

  • included gender mainstreaming and gender-based violence (GBV) actions in their annual work plans;
  • set aside a dedicated budget for gender mainstreaming, GBV prevention or response, and workplace inclusion;
  • set up a formal gender mainstreaming committee or a disability mainstreaming unit.

Universities dominate

Learning institutions took seven of the top ten places, with Moi, Maasai Mara, Kibabii, Kenyatta, SEKU and Kabianga universities joined by Karumo Technical Training Institute. HELB, the student loans agency, and KRA were the only non-teaching bodies in the top five.

The evaluation is part of the performance contracting framework used to measure how public bodies carry out government policy, including the requirement to integrate gender considerations into their operations and programmes.

For Moi University, one of Kenya's oldest public universities, the ranking is a rare piece of good news in a sector that has spent much of the year dealing with funding shortfalls and a lecturers' strike.

Photos: The Eastleigh Voice (Moi University main campus); Renvoy via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0) (Maasai Mara University sign, Narok). Thumbnail design: HAMASTA MEDIA.