https://repository.maseno.ac.ke/handle/123456789/5870 Fri, 15 May 2026 12:08:55 GMT 2026-05-15T12:08:55Z https://repository.maseno.ac.ke/handle/123456789/5888 An argument for South Africa's accession to the optional protocol to the international covenant on economic, social and cultural rights in the light of its importance and implications Viljoen, Frans; Orago, Nicholas The universality, indivisibility, interdependence and interrelatedness of all rights have been universally acclaimed since the drafting in 1948 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. However, despite the doctrine of indivisibility, civil and political rights (CPRs) have for a long time been treated as being enforceable judicially at the national, regional and international levels, while socio-economic rights (SERs) have not. With the elaboration and adoption of an Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (OP-ICESCR), which mandates the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (CESCR) to consider individual communications detailing the violations of SERs, the justiciability of SERs was also fully recognised at the international level. Wed, 01 Jan 2014 00:00:00 GMT https://repository.maseno.ac.ke/handle/123456789/5888 2014-01-01T00:00:00Z https://repository.maseno.ac.ke/handle/123456789/5887 Political and Socio-Economic Transformation under a New Constitutional Dispensation: An Analysis of the 2010 Kenyan Constitution as a Transformative Constitution Orago, Nicholas Wasonga Kenya has laboured under the challenges of poverty, inequality and political as well as socio-economic marginalisation, with the result that the country has struggled to achieve sustainable development. These challenges contributed to the struggle for a new political as well as socio-economic emancipation, a struggle which culminated in the promulgation of a new Constitution on 27 August 2010. The new Constitution contains several mechanisms aimed at the transformation of Kenya’s political as well as socio-economic situation both in the public and private sphere with the objective of enhancing equality, human dignity, social justice and the respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms. This article undertakes an analysis of the 2010 Kenyan Constitution using the parameters of transformative constitutionalism, developed in relation to the 1996 South African Constitution, to determine whether the 2010 Kenyan Constitution can effectively be termed a transformative constitution. The article concludes that the 2010 Constitution has all the necessary features of a transformative constitution and can effectively be used by the courts and other sectors of society so as to achieve political as well as egalitarian socio-economic transformation in Kenya. The article can be accessed in full via:https://www.jutajournals.co.za/ Wed, 01 Jan 2014 00:00:00 GMT https://repository.maseno.ac.ke/handle/123456789/5887 2014-01-01T00:00:00Z https://repository.maseno.ac.ke/handle/123456789/5886 Human rights and democratic governance in Kenya: A post-2007 appraisal John Osogo Ambani, Nicholas Wasonga Orago, Ochieng Walter Khobe, Paul Ogendi, Winifred Kamau, Conrad Bosire, Ken Obura, Juliet Okoth, Ruth Aura-Odhiambo This publication is a collection of essays on human rights and democratic governance in Kenya in the period after the 2007 post-elections violence. After surviving the trauma of electoral violence, the country soon embarked on a journey towards reconstruction by engaging in, among other things, intense re-evaluation of the then existing system of laws and institutions. In the process, the daunting task has been to reverse the flawed systems that have been in existence for many decades and in their place entrench systems that would promote and respect democratic governance and human rights. This publication, therefore, documents the extent of the country’s reconstruction since 2007, and makes recommendations for the way forward for the recovery of the state. Fri, 21 Aug 2015 00:00:00 GMT https://repository.maseno.ac.ke/handle/123456789/5886 2015-08-21T00:00:00Z https://repository.maseno.ac.ke/handle/123456789/5885 The Place of the “Minimum Core Approach” in the Realisation of the Entrenched Socio-Economic Rights in the 2010 Kenyan Constitution Orago, Nicholas Wasonga The high levels of poverty, inequality and socio-economic marginalisation that bedevilled Kenya for generations led to a struggle for a new constitutional dispensation, which culminated in the promulgation of a new, egalitarian and transformative constitution in August 2010. This constitution entrenched justiciable socio-economic rights within an elaborate Bill of Rights. Though an important step in the process of the egalitarian transformation of the country, the challenge remains to transform these precepts into practice with their scrupulous implementation through legislative, policy and programmatic frameworks, as well as judicial decision-making. This article argues that, in order to achieve the intended egalitarian transformation, Kenya must adopt a strong interpretive approach, with sufficient foundational standards for the translation of these rights into tangible realities for Kenyans. Kenya must therefore explicitly adopt a minimum core approach for the realisation of these rights to transform them into practical realities for the poor, vulnerable and marginalised Kenyans. doi:10.1017/S0021855315000121 Thu, 01 Oct 2015 00:00:00 GMT https://repository.maseno.ac.ke/handle/123456789/5885 2015-10-01T00:00:00Z https://repository.maseno.ac.ke/handle/123456789/5884 The impact of the global financial crisis on the realisation of socio-economic rights in sub-Saharan Africa: An analysis based on the Millennium Development Goals framework and processes Orago, Nicholas Wasonga The global financial crisis, which affected global trade and investment, did not leave sub-Saharan Africa untouched. The region registered a decline in economic growth in the period after the crisis and experienced ongoing impacts. The article looks at these impacts, focusing on the realisation of socioeconomic rights in sub-Saharan Africa using the mechanism of the Millennium Development Goals. It begins by describing the major actors that have played a leading role in economic growth in the region, and the realisation of socioeconomic rights. It then focuses on the pre-crisis growth period of 2000 to 2007, examining the drivers of growth in sub-Saharan Africa and how this growth impacted the realisation of socio-economic rights. The article uses the mechanism of the Millenium Development Goals framework and process to measure the achievement of each goal within a high growth period. It finds that while this growth created more resources for the realisation of socio-economic rights, little progress was made in achieving the Millennium Development Goals within that period: The socio-economic conditions of poor, vulnerable and marginalised individuals and groups remained the same. The article then looks at the effects of the global financial crisis on sub-Saharan African economies after 2007, indicating that the crisis had an adverse impact on economic growth, with growth declining to 5.5 per cent in 2008, 3.5 per cent in 2009 and then rebounding slightly to 5.1 per cent between 2013 and 2014 and further to 5.8 per cent in 2015. It says that, although the reduction in economic growth had a great impact on the availability of resources for the realisation of socioeconomic rights, an analysis of the MDG progress after the crisis does not show a marked difference from the MDG progress prior to the crisis. The article concludes that, even though the crisis had some impact on the realisation of socio-economic rights, its impact would have been greatly lessened if these subSaharan African countries had shown political commitment and developed proper mechanisms for the realisation of these rights Sun, 01 Jan 2017 00:00:00 GMT https://repository.maseno.ac.ke/handle/123456789/5884 2017-01-01T00:00:00Z https://repository.maseno.ac.ke/handle/123456789/5883 Socio-economic development and resource redistribution as tools for conflict prevention and post-conflict peace building in fragile societies: A comparative analysis of Burundi and Rwanda Orago, Nicholas Wasonga Sub-Saharan Africa has experienced a myriad of conflicts since the end of the Cold War. Many of these conflicts have lasted for long periods, leading to massive violations of human rights and creating general human suffering. The transitional justice processes that have been employed to resolve these intractable conflicts have mainly concentrated on political deal making and support to political-legal structures. Scant emphasis has been placed on the resolution of structural causes and factors contributing to these conflicts, such as poverty, inequality and socio-economic marginalisation. The failure to put in place post-conflict socio-economic development and resource redistribution policies in the context of peace building and conflict resolution processes has led to fragile post-conflict societies vulnerable to the recurrence of conflict. Using Rwanda and Burundi as case studies, this article argues that post-conflict transitional justice processes must implement effective socio-economic development and resource redistribution policies as a critical component of a comprehensive strategy aimed at dealing with all the root causes and factors contributing to intractable conflicts. This will ensure just, stable and peaceful post-conflict societies. Sun, 01 Jan 2017 00:00:00 GMT https://repository.maseno.ac.ke/handle/123456789/5883 2017-01-01T00:00:00Z https://repository.maseno.ac.ke/handle/123456789/5882 Food Security and Access to Food: The Viability of a Rights-Based Approach to Food Sovereignty in Kenya Orago, Nicholas Wasonga Food is fundamental to the well-being of each human person, the cohesion of the family unit and the achievement of sustainable peace and development. Improving household and national food security is, therefore, key in realising the full potential of each human person, achieving sustainable human development as well as ensuring overall peace and security. Despite this importance of food to the overall human well-being, opinions at the national and international levels differ on the best way of achieving food security and realising the right to food. The prevailing question that should be asked is: is the food security strategy as elaborated by modernist strategists and policy makers sufficient, or even relevant, to the achievement of food security and the reduction of chronic malnutrition in Kenya? Has it worked? How effective has it been? This paper explores the viability of a rights-based approach to food sovereignty with the context of the food sovereignity movement and how this approach may improve the food security situation in Kenya. The article can be accessed in full via:https://heinonline.org/HOL/LandingPage?handle=hein.journals/easfrilaj2017&div=5&id=&page Sun, 01 Jan 2017 00:00:00 GMT https://repository.maseno.ac.ke/handle/123456789/5882 2017-01-01T00:00:00Z https://repository.maseno.ac.ke/handle/123456789/5881 Sustainability of food systems: The role of legal and policy frameworks Orago, Nicholas Wasonga The commodification of food is one of the many causes of food insecurity as it occasions the inability of poor households to access the available food because of high prices and dysfunctional markets. A change of approach from commodification to commonification to deal with food insecurity at the national, regional and global level is the way to go. As commodification of food is a social construct adopted as a result of deliberate societal policy-making, commonification can similarly be adopted through legal and institutional design at the local, national and international levels; creating polycentric systems for the management of food-producing resources for the local communities. With commonification, decisions relating to the use of local resources for the production, processing, distribution and consumption of food are made at the local level, to ensure that other socioeconomic and cultural aspects of food are considered in the decision-making processes. The integrated aspects of the right to food and food democracy are critical components of the commonification approach to food security. https://doi.org/20.500.11825/691 Mon, 01 Jan 2018 00:00:00 GMT https://repository.maseno.ac.ke/handle/123456789/5881 2018-01-01T00:00:00Z https://repository.maseno.ac.ke/handle/123456789/5880 The African human rights system: Challenges and potential in addressing violence against women in Africa Orago, Nicholas Wasonga; Nassali, Maria Since the period of colonisation, the African continent has witnessed massive and widespread human rights violations, from massacres to genocides, political suppression to socio-economic neglect, from physical violence to structural violence. Women have been especially vulnerable to these massive and egregious human rights violations. This chapter aims to undertake a comprehensive analysis of the normative and institutional framework for the protection of women against violence. It analyses the work of the institutions created under the normative legal framework and delves into the practices and jurisprudence of these institutions on the protection of women from violence. Violence against women has been recognised globally as a violation of the fundamental rights of women and as an impediment to equality, sustainable development and peace. Women's sexuality and right to decide over their own bodies has been the most contested of all women's rights; subjected to control, by individual men, the family, society and the State. https://www.taylorfrancis.com/chapters/edit/10.4324/9781315185002-5 Thu, 22 Mar 2018 00:00:00 GMT https://repository.maseno.ac.ke/handle/123456789/5880 2018-03-22T00:00:00Z https://repository.maseno.ac.ke/handle/123456789/5879 Africa and mena Region (2018) Orago, Nicholas Wasonga Africa and mena regions continue to face natural hazard and extreme weather challenges that impact adversely on lives, livelihoods and developmental potentials. Hazard-related disasters include floods, droughts, pest/disease outbreaks, earthquakes, land/mud slides and cyclones/storms. Effective legal, policy and institutional frameworks on disaster risk reduction and management (drr/M) are required to respond to these challenges in order to enhance multi-hazard resilience. This correspondence details updates of the legal and institutional frameworks in these regions in 2018 Thu, 07 Nov 2019 00:00:00 GMT https://repository.maseno.ac.ke/handle/123456789/5879 2019-11-07T00:00:00Z