Returning to Lake Baringo: from research to action

Nairobi, Paris - 6 May 2026

More than a year after submitting our joint report to the UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (CESCR), Human Dignity returned to Lake Baringo together with the Centre for Enhancing Democracy and Good Governance (CEDGG) to meet women affected by climate change and assess developments on the ground.

Our 2025 report documented how recurrent flooding has disrupted women's access to healthcare, displaced communities and increased their exposure to gender-based violence, climate-sensitive diseases and other human rights challenges.

During our mission, we met with women and community representatives, as well as the Kenya National Commission on Human Rights (KNCHR) and county authorities, to discuss practical ways of strengthening accountability and ensuring that these concerns translate into concrete action.

This visit comes at an important moment. The UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights has now adopted its concluding observations on Kenya, reflecting several of the concerns raised in our joint submission. Among its recommendations, the Committee:

recognises the human rights impacts of climate change;
explicitly refers to communities displaced around Lake Baringo;
calls for stronger climate adaptation measures;
recommends ensuring access to adequate housing, social protection and healthcare, including sexual and reproductive health services, for affected communities.

While these recommendations represent an important step forward, our discussions in Baringo confirmed that many of the challenges identified in our report remain unresolved. Continued advocacy will therefore be essential to support their implementation.

Building on this momentum, Human Dignity and CEDGG are preparing a CEDAW shadow report focusing on the disproportionate impact of climate change on women's right to health. We are also developing the Baringo Climate Justice Campaign, a joint initiative aimed at turning community evidence into stronger local, national and international accountability.