Forced displacement is one of the critical humanitarian challenges facing displaced women and children globally. In Kenya, the challenge is evident in major refugee camps such as Dadaab and Kakuma, where women experience overlapping social, economic, and protection-related challenges. Despite humanitarian efforts to combat these challenges, most existing policies and programs often treat these women as a homogenous group, hence ignoring how gender intersects with other identities to create unique challenges and privileges. Therefore, this study sought to examine how gender and intersecting identities shape the experiences of displaced women living in Kenya’s refugee camps. The study also examined the social, economic, and protection-related challenges facing these women, as well as examine the extent to which intersectional frameworks have been adopted in Kenya's humanitarian policies and programs to protect these women.

To thoroughly address the research objectives, a qualitative research design was adopted. In particular, secondary data was collected from highly reputable sources, including UNHCR reports, NGO publications, policy briefs, and peer-reviewed articles. Document analysis using a thematic approach was then conducted to uncover hidden recurring themes and patterns in the data. The findings showed that gender is often treated as a static vulnerability marker, leading to one-size-fits-all interventions that ignore diverse realities among displaced women. Additionally, intersectional identities are frequently silenced in policy and humanitarian discourse, resulting in disparities in access to essential services, leadership, and empowerment opportunities. Thus, the study concluded that adopting an intersectional approach in humanitarian and policy frameworks is crucial to address the multifaceted inequalities affecting displaced women. There was also a need to integrate gender and identity-responsive strategies in existing frameworks to ensure inclusivity, equity, and genuine empowerment of displaced women living in Kenya’s refugee camps.