Article 54(1) of the Constitution of Kenya 2010 provides that “a person with disability is entitled;

(a) to be treated with dignity and respect and to be addressed and referred to in a manner that is not demeaning;

(b) to access educational institutions and facilities for persons with disabilities that are integrated into society to the extent compatible with the interests of the person;

(c) to reasonable access to all places, public transport and information;

(d) to use Sign language, Braille or other appropriate means of communication; and

(e) to access materials and devices to overcome constraints arising from the person’s disability.” (Government of Kenya, 2010), page 37.

Article 54(2) states that “The State shall ensure the progressive implementation of the principle that at least five percent of the members of the public in elective and appointive bodies are persons with disabilities” (The Republic of Kenya, 2013), page 37.

There are no other provisions for protecting the rights of people with dementia. However, a recent training workshop (July 2019) for clinicians, NGOs promoting research and advocating for the rights of people with psychosocial disabilities, government institutions and policy makers used the WHO Quality Rights Tool Kit (World Health Organisation, 2012) to create awareness and to transfer knowledge into practice. The Mental Health Amendment Bill of 2018 is the most recent legislation addressing Kenya’s infrastructure around Mental Health. It outlines, among other things, the obligations of  national and county governments to build systems that address mental illness (GoK, 2018). The document does not make mention of any specific illnesses, nor does it provide a protocol for addressing them.   

References:

GoK. (2018). Kenya Gazette Supplement. Finance Act, 2018, 59(59), 165.

Government of Kenya. (2010). The Kenya Constitution, 2010. Kenya Law Reports. http://www.kenyalaw.org/lex/actview.xql?actid=Const2010

Republic of Kenya. (2013). The National Social Security Fund Act, 2013 No. 45 of 2013. 27 December. Nairobi, Kenya. http://kenyalaw.org/kl/fileadmin/pdfdownloads/Acts/NationalSocialSecurityFundAct2013.pdf

World Health Organisation. (2012). WHO QualityRights Tool Kit: Assessing and improving quality and human rights in mental health and social care facilities. Geneva, Switzerland. https://apps.who.int/iris/handle/10665/70927