How Large is the Number of Kikuyu Single Mothers?
Every once in a while, the issue of single motherhood among the Kikuyu comes up on Twitter, with many observing that single-parent families in Central Kenya have reached crisis levels. It is unclear what could cause such demographic peculiarities, especially one presumed to afflict only a single community. Some of the theories suggested include alcoholism in the region, low masculinity among Kikuyu men, and higher levels of women empowerment.
The single-mother phenomenon is not unique to the Kikuyu. Across the world, different communities and ethnicities have been observed to have varying rates of single-parent families. In the United States, data shows higher rates of children raised by single parents among the black community, presumably due to higher incarceration rates, homicides, and anomie. In other parts of the Western Hemisphere, the sexual revolution of the 60s and 70s ushered in a period of sexual freedom, whereby women became free to initiate divorces and engage in sexual behaviors, leading to higher rates of single motherhood.
In Kenya, however, there’s a lot to unpack since very little information exists on single-parent families and what causes them. Furthermore, understanding how these families come to be is the first step toward finding long-term solutions. Children raised by single mothers have been observed to have higher rates of criminality, poverty, and lower education attainment. Therefore, instead of single mothers being a subject of ridicule, society ought to find a way to deal with the problem and restore the family unit.
Single Motherhoods per Ethnic Regions
By looking at ethnic regions, we can determine how several Kenyan tribes and ethnicities rank on a specific metric, like children living with their mothers alone even though the father is still alive. The 2022 Kenya Demographic and Housing Survey contains a lot of county-level data which can be aggregated to highlight these differences within ethnic regions. The bar graph below shows Kenya’s mean rate of single motherhood per ethnic region.
This bar graph should be surprising to many for two reasons: First, Kikuyus do not have the country’s highest rates of single-mother households. The Kamba have a much higher rate for reasons unknown. The Kikuyu are second, followed by the larger Mt. Kenya region. Second, the number of children living with mothers only is high across the country, with most areas averaging rates above 20%. Single motherhood is not a Kikuyu phenomenon since the rates are high everywhere. Worth asking, therefore, is whether there is any significant difference in the rates of single motherhood between regions.
The table above shows results from an independent sample test where I compare rates of single motherhood between Luos and Kikuyus. The mean difference is eight percentage points, with Kikuyus having a mean of 25.76 and Luos 17.30. The difference is significant, and we can say with certainty that the Luo and Kikuyu have different rates of children living with single mothers. On the contrary, the table below shows a similar test between Kikuyu and Kalenjin. There’s no reason to believe the difference in the rates is real and could be anything, including chance.
The takeaway from the two tables and bar graph above is that Kenya has high rates of children living with mothers only. There are no huge differences between regions; where differences exist, they are not statistically significant. The idea that Kikuyus have conspicuous rates of children living with single mothers is primarily an urban myth, fuelled by traditional practices like male Kikuyu children taking their mothers’ names. It’s hard to know whether a Kamba or Luhya is raised by a single mother because at no point does the male child take the feminine name of the mother.
Children Living with Both Parents
Knowing that some children live with mothers only might not be enough to understand family dynamics between ethnic regions in Kenya. The rate of children living with both parents is also an important indicator that allows us to test the single-mother hypothesis reductively. The assumption is that ethnic groups with high rates of children raised by single mothers will have low rates of children raised by both parents. Furthermore, if Kikuyus truly have high rates of female-headed families, it should reflect negatively on children raised by both parents.
This is another counter-intuitive bar graph highlighting slight differences between regions regarding children living with both parents. Maasai children are more likely to live with both parents, followed by Somalis, coastal ethnicities, the Kalenjin, the Kikuyu, and the larger Mt. Kenya region. My hunch is that if the Kikuyu single-mother stereotype were true, Kikuyus would have the lowest rates of children living with both parents. Surprisingly, children in Kikuyu households are more likely to live with both parents than their counterparts in Luo, Kamba, Kisii, and Luhya homes.
When you see data like these, it’s essential to think clearly about what could be happening instead of jumping on the obvious. The obvious is that many children are being raised by single mothers across the country; what’s not apparent is why. Could it be that some fathers leave their children to work elsewhere? For how long do these fathers leave? If you’ve interacted with Luhyas, you’ll notice they don’t bring their wives and children into town. The father works and sends money home. I’ve asked some Kikuyu women about that kind of family formulation, and all tend to insist they will live together with their husbands wherever he lives. The stereotype of the fierce, matriarchal, and empowered Kikuyu woman comes into play.
Single Mother Families and Alcoholism in Central Kenya
A culprit that has been cited as the reason behind the higher rates of single mothers among the Kikuyu is alcoholism. It’s, therefore, essential to test whether this is true. The bar graph below shows the rates of alcohol consumption among people of different ethnic regions. According to the KDHS, these people reported drinking alcohol at least once last month.
True to the stereotype, Kikuyus indeed have higher rates of alcohol consumption compared to other regions. The differences are also huge, which is reason enough to believe these are not statistical flukes. Kambas come second, and the larger Mt. Kenya region third. One consistency in the data is the high rates of alcoholism among Kikuyus and Kambas and the slightly higher rates of female-headed households. I looked at the correlation between both variables, and the results were impressive.
There was a moderate but positive correlation (r=0.4, p=0.003) between alcohol consumption and the percentage of children living with mothers only. Even though the relationship might not be causative, this tells us that alcohol might indeed play a role in influencing marriage and family dynamics. A question worth asking at this point is whether alcoholism is a sufficient ground for divorce. I believe it is, especially considering the fierce, matriarchal, and empowered Kikuyu woman. Suffice it to note that by empowered, I mean the Kikuyu women are highly liberal, educated, and employed compared to their counterparts.
The first chart above shows levels of educational attainment by women in each household. Central Kenya women have higher rates of both secondary and post-secondary education. The Kalenjin counties of Uasin Gishu, Elgeyo Marakwet, and Nandi also have double-digit rates. The second chart shows employment status, with Central Kenya women having, on average, higher employment rates. These two charts are necessary because women are likely to initiate divorces when they believe they have options outside the family. Higher education attainment and employment can particularly be emboldening. Therefore, if alcoholism is a sufficient ground for divorce among the Kikuyu, it’s probably because the Kikuyu woman can’t tolerate it. By being employed and educated, prospects outside marriage aren’t as damning.
Conclusion
It is unclear why other ethnic regions might have higher rates of female-headed families. What we know for sure is that the fathers of these children are alive, and the large rates cannot be explained by death. The three remaining options are separation- which can be explained by many reasons, divorce, and abscondment. For Kikuyu, the rates of single-parent families are high but not conspicuous. As we’ve seen, the high rate is only eight percentage points higher than Luo’s. Other regions come somewhere in between, and their differences might not be statistically significant. A review of the rates of children raised by both parents reveals some consistency with the high rates of single parenthood but with minimal variation across regions. Furthermore, the Kikuyu, who hypothetically should have lower rates of children raised by both parents, appear not to be implicated adversely by such data. Arguably, alcoholism is partly to blame for the region’s high rates of single mothers. This is if we assume Central Kenya rates are primarily driven by divorce and abscondment. If it’s divorce, then the Kikuyu woman appears to have zero tolerance for alcoholism, and by being empowered through education and employment, she can fathom a better life beyond the husband. Abscondment by the father generally brings to question the personality profile of the Kikuyu woman and the economic and social well-being of Kikuyu men. However, that’s a question for a different day.
