Kenya Polygyny

Kenya's Parliament passed a bill allowing men to marry multiple wives.[4] Polygamy is common among traditional communities in Kenya, as well as among the country’s Muslim community. When you marry an African woman, she must know the second one is on the way, and a third wife... this is Africa. As in many parts of Africa, polygyny is common among traditional communities in Kenya, as well as among the country's Muslim community, which accounts for up to a fifth of the population. Any time a man comes home with a woman that would be assumed to be a second or third wife. Under customary law, women or wives you have married do not need to be told when you're coming home with a second or third wife.

Taking additional wives was regarded as one of the fundamental indicators of successful established men. Some of the men indicated that they were pressured by their parents to marry another wife, who could contribute additional income to the family. Some of the young polygynous men indicated that they were trapped in polygyny because of the large number of single women who needed and were willing to take them as husbands although they were already married. Most of those second and third wives were older women who had not yet married. For many male migrants, polygyny is a solution to the problem of spending a lot of time and resources travelling upcountry to be with families.