Source: Daily Nation
Public health minister Beth Mugo is urging for affirmative action in education to create more employment opportunities for women in the civil service.

Mrs Mugo complained that the criteria for admissions to national secondary schools and public universities discriminated against girls resulting in the low number of women getting government jobs.

"We need affirmative action to address the gender imbalance in university admissions and even in national schools," she said.

Mrs Mugo said there was need to review institutions of higher learning's admission criteria to ensure more opportunities are given to girls to deal with the gender imbalance in the civil service.

"We must ensure that girls get their rightful share of opportunities in secondary schools and universities to ensure more women get jobs in government," she said.

The minister also defended the Kikuyu community against claims in the audit report released by Public Service Minister Dalmas Otieno last week, that its members dominated the civil service because of the influence of the country's first president, Mzee Jomo Kenyatta and current president Mwai Kibaki.

"Mzee Kenyatta was never a tribalist, it only happens that Kikuyus are the majority in the country and thus more likely to dominate every sector.

"Even if you go to prisons or mortuaries, you will find that Kikuyus are the majority," Mrs Mugo argued saying that the country should not be divided.

The Ministry of Public Health is one of those cited as having more men than women employees. The uniformed forces have the lowest number of female staff.

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