This programme targets to contribute towards creating an atmosphere of sustainable trust and harmonious co-existence of communities in the region. This, we realise, by facilitating conflict resolution dialogues, mediation and strengthening of local community governance institutions.
 

The Need

Without peaceful co-existence of different communities and without enforcement of law and order, equality and equity, disaster resilience building initiatives are compromised and the result is likely to be heightened household food insecurity, displacements, unemployment, rising crime, disenfranchisement and the violation of the rule of law.
Humanitarian assistance is often undermined where there is no peace and security and the main casualties are usually women and children and other non-combatants who usually have nothing to do with the violent conflict at all.
Conflicts in this region are rife. People lose their lives while thousands others get displaced as a result of inter-community conflicts which are mostly caused by competition for pasture and water.

The Interventions

We engage in peace and governance issues in the remote areas of Marsabit County and Southern Ethiopia in order to create an environment in which other aspects of our programmes that we implement in communities are not affected or disrupted.
Other interventions have entailed strengthening traditional alternative conflict resolution mechanisms as well those legally institutionalized by the State in the County. Our programmes have facilitated peace building and conflict management/ resource sharing dialogues between communities to enhance cohesive coexistence and mitigate conflict disaster threats and shocks.
We have increased citizen and duty bearer interactions through the use of SMS & Voice communication platforms in various wards. We have also trained Community Reporters and Ward Administrators on Citizen Reporting. The SMS Voices project is one such project that facilitated inter-community return of straying livestock between Turbi and Walda communities – both located in Marsabit County.

Numbers

  1. 10 wards benefited from an SMS voices communication platform implemented to increase citizen and duty bearer interactions
  2. 50 Community Reporters and 10 Ward Administrators trained on Citizen Reporting.
  3. MoU signed with the County Government of Marsabit as a strategic partner in the implementation of SMS Voices Project
  4. Facilitated inter-community peace and resource sharing dialogues
  5. Supported inter-school peace forums
  6. Integration of conflict management with resilience projects for communities prone to twin disasters (Natural & Man-made Disasters) from the realization that conflict is a signal of a weak resilience.

About Pacida

The Pastoralist Community Initiative and Development Assistance (PACIDA) is a development and relief organisation that empowers pastoralist communities through sustainable community-driven development interventions.

PACIDA was founded in 2008 by local scholars and development practitioners who were concerned about the huge and widening humanitarian needs, deepening vulnerabilities and huge development gap in its target region.

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Contact us

Postal Address: PO Box 3336 - 0500 Marsabit, Kenya.

Email: pacida@pacida.org

Hotline: +254 (0) 20 265 6947

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