Category: Updates

Between 14^th and 17^th July 2014 CEEC trained 27 male youth from Kikuyu Sub County on Positive Masculinities with a view to building their capacity to combat gender based violence. The training was informed by the high incidence of gender based violence within the sub county with men being the main perpetrators. Evolving social and economic dynamics in Kikuyu Sub County as elsewhere in the country have brought about an affront to manhood resulting in unhealthy expressions of masculinity mainly through violence perpetrated by men against women as well as fellow men. This desire to assert power over others is rooted in male socialization which thrives on dominance and conquest.  This project which is supported by DKA Austria aims at helping the young men to become aware of how they embrace violent masculinities through the socialization process making violence part of their male identity. Men need to understand that the use of violence over others is actually a sign of disempowerment and that nonviolent masculinities are possible and desirable. That indeed, positive, healthy, nonviolent masculinity is a mark of real manhood.

The training was an eye opener for the youth who were able to make the link between flawed masculinities and violence. The youth also understood how gender based violence affects not only women but also men themselves and children. With this understanding, they were able to appreciate the important role they can play to combat this vice starting by personal change before reaching out to others. At the end of the training, the youth resolved to become champions against gender based violence and they came up with action plans outlining how they will raise awareness and mobililize fellow youth in their respective wards against gender based violence.

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CEEC has been working with women and MCAs from Kandara Sub County in Murang’a County on a Women and Devolved Governance Project supported by GIZ (CPS) which aims at promoting women’s participation in devolved governance. In February and March respectively the women and the MCAs were trained on devolved governance, transformative leadership and women’s participation in governance. After the trainings the women mobilized other women from their respective wards namely Kagundu-ini, Gaichanjiru, Muruka, Nga’raria, Ruchu and Ithiru to attend ward based forums. The purpose of the forums was to help the women address their issues of concern to their leaders. All the six MCAs attended the forums in their respective wards and responded to the concerns raised by the women. The women were very happy with the forums especially given that some of them did not know their MCAs and those who do had never seen them after they voted for them. They felt the forums had opened up channels of communication between them and their leaders and they would now be able to continue engaging with them. The MCAs on the other hand appreciated the fact that the forums had provided them with an opportunity to engage with a big segment of their constituents. They affirmed the important role that women play and pledged to work with them to ensure that there was gender inclusive governance in their respective wards.

As a follow up of the training of women from Kandara Sub County on devolved governance that took place in February 2014, CEEC trained seven MCAs from the same Sub County (five out of the elected six and two nominated women MCAs) in March 2014. The training which took place under the “Women and Devolved Governance” project supported by GIZ (CPS) covered the rationale for women’s participation, challenges that women face and strategies of enhancing their participation in devolved governance. The training aimed at building the capacity of the MCAs to promote women’s participation in devolved governance thus contributing to an all inclusive governance in Kandara Sub County.

Kenya promulgated a new Constitution in August 2010 which among other things provides for a devolved system of governance which system was ushered in by the March 2013 General Elections. This system of governance is supposed to bring governance closer to the people and enhance participation of all population groups including women and youth. However, for citizens to effectively participate, their capacity needs to be strengthened especially the historically marginalized groups like women and youth. This is the basis of theWomen and Devolved Governance project which is supported by GIZ (CPS) and which seeks to strengthen the capacity of both women and Members of County Assemblies (MCAs) to facilitate effective civic engagement by women. The project is piloting in Kandara Sub County of Murang’a County, Central Kenya where CEEC trained 30 women drawn from all the six wards on devolved governance from26^th to 28^th February 2014. In addition to devolved governance, the women were trained on gender to help them understand the reasons behind women’s general marginalization and specifically their lack of participation in governance.  The training will be followed by a two days’ training of MCAs on their mandate under devolved governance. The MCAs will also be trained on ways of promoting women’s participation after which six ward based women’s forums will be held to facilitate engagement between women and their MCAs.

From 14^th to 17^th January 2014, CEEC Executive Director Jane Maina and Programs Manager Nelly Njoki participated in a workshop organized by the Initiatives of Change Centre for Governance (ICCfG) on ‘Ethics in Public Governance’. The workshop that brought together around 30 participants at Asia Plateau, Panchgani, India aimed at helping participants evolve a personal paradigm of ethical leadership and governance. One major outcome of the workshop was an idea that was mooted to start a Centre for Governance for the East and Horn of Africa region.

In 2012-2013, CEEC implemented the Promotion and Protection of Women’s Inheritance Rights Project in Central Kenya with the support of Virginia Gildersleeve International Fund (VGIF). The project which was concluded in May 2013 resulted in the enhanced capacity of 27 community leaders on issues of family law and succession as well as development of a Community Trainers Manual. On 7^th January 2014, an external evaluation meeting was held at Kandara Development Office, led by Ms. Joan Omini a VGIF consultant. The meeting brought together 9 group leaders representing the 5 areas of project reach. The evaluation noted that the participants had learnt a lot from the project and they had reached out to other community members with the knowledge and skills they had gained. Overall, the project had a positive effect on the community as was evident from increased joint registration of property by married people and a reduction of property disputes. The fact that the project had male participants helped to overcome the barrier that women had in addressing men on issues of women’s rights. However, the evaluation also noted the dire need scale up the project so as to reach more community members in other parts of the project area. In addition, inclusion of a component on economic empowerment of women was highlighted as a way of complementing this kind of work.

On 27^th November 2013, CEEC launched “Sauti Mtaani” an E-Participation platform comprising of an SMS service and a Facebook application which seeks to facilitate engagement between the youth and their Members of County Assembly (MCAs). The project is piloting with twelve wards in four informal settlements in Nairobi namely; Dandora I, Dandora II, Dandora III and Dandora IV Wards (Dandora) Mabatini, Hospital, Kiamaiko, Ngei and Mathare North Wards (Mathare), Pipeline and Kwa Reuben Wards (Mukuru) and  Korogocho Ward (Korogocho). The SMS platform known as Tumatext (send a text message) is a web based portal which will enable the youth to send text messages to a number designated to their respective MCA who will in turn respond to their concerns from any web enabled device. This means the MCAs will able to communicate with the youth from their wards from anywhere in the world as long as they have internet connectivity. The Tumatext platform is linked to a Facebook Application to further broaden the reach. The Sauti Mtaani platform is part of the Youth and Devolved Governance project supported by Heinrich Boll Stiftung, East Africa / Horn of Africa Regional Office which aims at enhancing youth participation in devolved governance.

On 14th-16^th November 2013, CEEC conducted a training for members of Nairobi County Assembly at Capital Hill Lodge, Nakuru. The training brought together MCAs from Mabatini, Hospital, Kiamaiko, Kwa Reuben, Pipeline, Korogocho and Sarang’ombe wards. It covered issues of leadership, transparency, accountability and public participation. The main focus was the MCAs’ mandate, duties and responsibilities and particularly how they can enhance youth participation in devolved governance through SMS and Facebook platforms. This was the second phase of the Youth and Devolved Governance Project supported by the Heinrich Boll Stiftung, East Africa / Horn of Africa Regional Office, the first one being youth training on devolved governance that took place in October 2013

On 3rd May 2013, CEEC launched a Training Guide on women’s inheritance rights in Kandara, Murang’a County. The Guide was a culmination of a year long project Promotion and Protection of Women’s Inheritance Rights in Central Kenya which was supported by Virginia Gildersleeve International Fund (VGIF). The project worked with 27 community leaders, both men and women, strengthening their capacity to be women’s inheritance rights champions in Kandara, Central Kenya.The launch was officiated by the area Senior Chief Phillip Muturi Gituru. The Guide will assist the community leaders trained under this project and other interested parties in sensitizing the community on women’s inheritance rights.

This project which was building on the work CEEC had done in 2012 , was implemented against the backdrop of the post election violence that broke out in 2007/8 and in anticipation of the 2013 general election. The aim was to build the capacity of the youth to promote and maintain peace before, during and after the general election. CEEC worked with a total of 57 youth (both male and female) on issues of nonviolence, peaceful electioneering, respect for diversity and inter ethnic dialogue. The youth were drawn from seven informal settlements in Nairobi namely; Kibra, Mathare, Korogocho, Mukuru, Dandora, Kawangware and Kiambiu. In the run up to the March 2013 general election, the youth traversed their respective informal settlements particularly areas considered hot spots, advocating for peaceful elections and harmonious inter ethnic co-existence through travelling theatre. They also used posters, stickers, wrist bands and key rings to pass the message. In addition to the travelling theatre, the trainees also participated in talk shows in two community radio stations, Pamoja FM in Kibra and Koch FM in Korogocho with a view of spreading the message of peace to a wider constituency. During monitoring visits and evaluation of the project, CEEC learnt from both the community members and the youth themselves that the project had contributed to the peace that was experienced before, during and after the 2013 general election. Indeed some of the youth CEEC interviewed admitted to have been perpetrators of violence during the 2007 general election but in their own words, they had now become “transformers who were transforming others”.