Kisumu County Residents Optimistic of Improved Services as DAP Ends
The 6 month Drivers of Accountability Project in Kisumu county has ended with the county government promising to adopt conflict sensitive approaches to development.
Addressing a breakfast meeting for project implementers, Kisumu County Governor Jack Ranguma assured that his government would seriously consider all issues raised during various community forums that also brought together members of the civil society.
The project was among other things aimed at ensuring the operationalization and implementation of devolution is underpinned by conflict sensitive approaches to development.
During the 6 month period, various activities that included building the capacity of Civil Society Organizations for constructive engagement with elected leaders as well as county government officials were conducted.
Governor Ranguma acknowledged the challenges facing the implementation of devolution adding that much was yet to be done. “There are many legal requirements to be done before setting up a City Board in this county,” he said when he responded to some of the concerns raised.
The project was implemented by the National Council of Churches of Kenya (NCCK) Nyanza region in conjunction with her development partner, Safer World. Through DAP, the two partners also sought to ensure that county structures in Kisumu county adopted and operationalized conflict-sensitive approaches that enhance peace, security and equitable resource sharing and become more responsive to community needs.
To achieve the effected outputs, NCCK and Safer World Consultant selected and trained strategic representatives from CSOs that were later tasked with the mobilization and organization of Community Action Groups (CAG) in their respective wards. CAG came up with committees that would spearhead advocacy and social auditing efforts in their specific wards on behalf of CAG.
A few members were selected from CAG committees to form the Joint Integrated Forum (JIF), that would be the umbrella committee charged with the responsibility of coordinating the efforts of CAGs for the entire County. The JIF, NCCK and Safer World then organized breakfast meetings for the County government leaders among them Ward Administrators, Members of County Assembly (MCAs) and the Executive respectively.
During the meeting with the different organs, members constructively shared with the leaders in the spirit of conflict sensitivity on issues that they had identified as priority areas of engagement. The meeting with the MCAs discussed the issues of persistent wrangling that was a common occurrence in Kisumu County Assembly and the perceived ‘unholy’ alliance between the Assembly and the Executive that allegedly negated their oversight role. They also focused on issues of development at the Ward level.
NCCK’s Nyanza Regional Coordinator Zack Gaya told Jumuia news that the project enhanced the community’s participation confidence in the county’s budget processes. “There is also successful engagement with ward administrators, MCAs and the County Executive Committee,formation of CAGs to identify issues of priorities in respective wards and peaceful demonstration on County assembly as a symbolic expression of dissatisfaction of the on-goings in the assembly,” he added.
