TURKANA, Kenya – A climate resilience program is launched to help communities adapt to the impacts of climate change and build capacity to withstand future climate-related challenges.
These programs aim to reduce vulnerability, enhance adaptive capacity, and promote sustainable development in the face of a changing climate.
Against this backdrop, a three-year program on cross-border peace and climate resilience has been initiated by the County Government of Turkana to assist communities in anticipating, preventing, and adapting to shocks brought on by climate change and displacement caused by conflicts. Women and girls are the target audience in particular.
About Sh672 million has been invested in the initiative, which is run by the Danish Refugee Council (DRC) and supported by the Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs through DANIDA.
Deputy Governor Dr. John Erus, who spoke at the event this week, stated that the project is coming at a critical moment as the county increases its efforts to improve climate resilience and cross-border peace.
Why cross-border communities should embrace resource sharing
He exhorted partners in implementation to match their initiatives to the project’s goal of building resilient communities. He also gave them the county’s help in fostering a supportive atmosphere.
“The county is enhancing traditional peacebuilding mechanisms, including the Lokiriama Peace Accord and the One Health initiative known as Kimormor, especially in the Kenya-Uganda border,” said Dr. Erus.
On his part, the County Commissioner Julius Kavita emphasised the importance of formalised resource-sharing agreements between cross-border pastoralist communities to avert conflict.
“Resource sharing along the border is key to maintaining peaceful co-existence and reducing vulnerability to intercommunal conflict. However, respective government security agencies must strengthen surveillance to deter peace spoilers hiding behind the outdated practice of cattle rustling,” he said.
DRC Country Director Simon Nzioka said the program was informed by extensive consultations aimed at placing the community at the centre of implementation.
“With support from the Danish Government, we will implement this program from 2025 to 2027 to address the twin challenges of climate change and conflict in the Kenya-Uganda border region,” Nzioka said.
Which areas will the climate resilience target in Turkana
Raphael Locham, the program manager at DRC, noted that the initiative will target North Pokot, Loima, Lokiriama/Lorengippi in Kenya, as well as Amudat, Moroto, and Napak in Uganda.
“We aim to empower over 33,000 people with skills and capacities to adopt climate-resilient and peace-promoting approaches,” said Locham.
The program is expected to deliver both software components, such as training, and hardware interventions informed by research. These include water provision, livelihood diversification, ecosystem restoration, and climate-smart agriculture.
DRC will implement the initiative in collaboration with the Agency for Pastoralist Development (APaD), African Women Rising (AWR), and research firm Samuel Hall.
The launch brought together CECM for Environment, Natural Resources and Climate Change, Audan Leah Lokaala, Deputy County Secretary, Dr. Albert Gamoe, Director of Legal Affairs, Ekal Lokoruka, Director of Peace, Titus Lokorikeju, and Deputy Directors Thomas Kiyonga and Emmanuel Esau.
The partners present included DRC Head of Programmes Alistair Cowan, Karamoja Strong Project Manager David Oyori, and Resident District Commissioners from Amudat, Napak and Moroto.
How Turkana County has benefited from FLLoCA initiatives
This comes when the County Directorate of Climate Change recently inspected climate-resilience projects funded under the Financing Locally-Led Climate Action (FLLoCA) initiative across Turkana South and Aroo sub-counties.
Led by Chief Officer for Climate Change, Imoni Ekalale, the field visit was part of ongoing monitoring and evaluation efforts to ensure that construction work complies with specifications outlined in the bills of quantities.
According to Chief Ekalale, borehole drilling had been completed in nearly all wards. These projects were prioritised by residents through Participatory Climate Risk Assessments (PCRA) and later integrated into the County Climate Change Action Plan.
“These boreholes are a key part of our strategy to support agro-pastoral livelihoods and promote afforestation efforts in Turkana,” he said.
Chief Ekalale also revealed that the county is in the final stages of awarding contracts to equip the boreholes, aiming to bolster local communities’ resilience to the adverse impacts of climate change.
Deputy Director of Climate Change, Thomas Kiyong’a, added that the evaluation exercise aimed to identify both well-performing and underperforming projects to help the county plan timely interventions.
