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Under the Heinrich Boell Stiftung-East & Horn of Africa supported project Youth Promoting Inter-ethnic Harmony through Political Dialogue in Nairobi County, youth from five informal settlements in Nairobi held political dialogues between 22^nd November and 15^th December 2017. The dialogue forums which were held in Dandora, Kawangware, Korogocho, Kibra and Mathare aimed at promoting inter-ethnic and political tolerance. Three sets of forums were held in each of the settlements bringing together 25 youth from Jubilee party and 25 from the NASA coalition. The forums gave the youth a safe space to not only interrogate their reasons for supporting either side of the political divide but also talk to each other candidly about the things they did not like about each other’s behavior. The youth appreciated the forums which they said were the first of their kind. Most organizations preached peace but now for the first time, they were able to face each other and talk to each other openly. From the discussions, it was evident that most of the youth do not understand the manifestos of the parties they follow. Their allegiance to particular political parties is not issues based but rather it is informed by factors like blind loyalty to personalities, following in their parents’ footsteps or even handouts. The youth also realized how they are all grappling with similar challenges regardless of which political divide they belong to. There was general consensus that the youth were the losers when they agreed to be manipulated by the politicians. The politicians themselves differed politically but never fought each other. Instead, they used the youth to fight their battles for them. Asserting that every person has a right to their own political opinions and to support political parties of their choice, the youth committed to make their own decisions instead of following politicians blindly. Under the tag phrases #Siasa isi 2 divide and #Siasa Mbaya Huleta Hasara, the youth agreed to disagree without resulting to violence. They also agreed that they belong to one tribe that is called Vijanaa (youth) and they undertook to join hands to hold their leaders accountable so that youth issues can be included in development plans.

On 15^th November 2017, CEEC held a meeting of 19 youth Dialogue Initiators from five of Nairobi’s informal settlements namely Dandora, Kawangware, Korogocho, Kibra and Mathare at Central Park Hotel Nairobi.  This was under the Heinrich Boell Stiftung – East & Horn of Africa supported project Youth Promoting Inter-ethnic Harmony through Political Dialogue in Nairobi County which was implemented between November and December 2017. The project was informed by the inter-ethnic tensions and animosities that are characteristic of the electioneering period. Being electoral hot spots, the informal settlements witnessed an escalation of political hostilities into violence which resulted in displacement, destruction of property, maiming and even loss of lives. Inevitably, this kind of violence always takes on an ethnic nature, and the 2017 General Election was no different. Ethnic profiling and stereotyping between supporters of Jubilee and NASA, eviction of those living in “enemy” strongholds, destruction of property and general ethnic and political intolerance were rampant. Needless to say, majority of those involved in the perpetration of violence were in the youth age bracket. It was therefore important for youth from across the political divide to have candid discussions on their perceptions, true or false, and stereotypes that they hold towards each other and also explore ways of co-existing despite holding different political views. During the meeting, the youth discussed the situation in their areas and came up with a strategy of promoting harmonious co-existence through political dialogue. Youth from each informal settlement agreed to hold three sets of dialogue forums between November and December 2017 each bringing together 50 youth (both male and female) from the two political divides.

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The objective of the project “Youth and Governance: Enhancing Youth Participation in 2017 General Elections through the Sauti Mtaani Platform within Nairobi County” was to facilitate engagement between youth and MCA aspirants in Nairobi. This engagement was expected to help the youth make informed choices at the ballot. In this regard, 22 aspirants and 92 youth from 17 wards went through a Sauti Mtaani induction process between May and June 2017. Thereafter, the aspirants and the youth organized popularization forums within their respective wards in order to raise awareness about the platform. The forums which reached about 2500 youth gave the aspirants an opportunity to articulate their agenda for the youth who in return engaged their potential leaders on issues of concern. After a practical demonstration of how Sauti Mtaani works, CEEC encouraged the youth to continue with the engagement online since not all their questions would be answered face to face. The aspirants were happy with the platform which they said would help them reach a huge segment of the population easily. The youth on their part were excited that the platform provided easy access to their potential leaders at no cost. Together with their aspirants, they were grateful to CEEC for coming up with such an innovative idea and promised to popularize the platform within their respective wards.

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From 19^th to 23^rd June 2017, CEEC provided support to GIZ/CPS to conduct an Anti-Bias training that took place in Burnt Forest. In this regard, CEEC mobilized 24 participants from eight farms in Burnt Forest namely Lingway, Kamuyu, Rukuini, Kaplelach, Ndungulu, Chuiyat, Barekeiywo and Kagongo. Three participants were mobilized from each farm ensuring there was gender inclusivity. CEEC also assisted with logistical arrangements, facilitation of the training and filming which was done on the last day. Two similar trainings were conducted in Mombasa and Kisumu respectively and all the three trainings culminated in a short film called “We Are” which can be found on https://youtu.be/te8nEGTe2yU. (available both in English and Kiswahili)In a nutshell, the theme of the training which was captured in the short film was;

It is not about overcoming our differences – it is about acknowledging them. We can all learn to acknowledge and appreciate our diversity, if we are ready to critically reflect on our stereotypes and prejudices about each other. Peace is the respect for freedom and diversity.

#WeAre

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Between 12^th and 20^th June 2017, CEEC conducted a Sauti Mtaani induction of 92 youth under the project “Youth and Governance: Enhancing Youth Participation in 2017 General Elections through the Sauti Mtaani Platform within Nairobi County”. The aim was to help the youth understand how Sauti Mtaani platform works and become ambassadors who would popularize it among their peers. Sauti Mtaani is a web based platform that facilitates engagement between youth and their leaders at the ward level. This phase had 22 participating wards in Nairobi County namely Landimawe, Komarock, Viwandani, Mutuini, Eastleigh South, Eastleigh North, Kangemi, Dandora I, Dandora II, Dandora III, California, Imara Daima, Laini Saba, Kariobangi North, Ziwani/Kariokor, Airbase and Kilimani. The ambassadors appreciated the fact that the platform provided a free and easy access to the aspirants. They were happy that they were now able to engage the aspirants on pertinent issues thus helping them make informed choices at the ballot.

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The youth in Kikuyu Sub County were treated to an eye opening experience during a seminar on Alcohol and Substance Abuse which was held at Lusengeti Social Hall on 9^th June 2017. The seminar was held under the DKA funded project Positive Masculinities: Working with young men to combat Gender Based Violence in Kiambu County, Kenya”.  This was against the backdrop of the  prevalence of this vice among the soccer players and fans in the Sub County. According to the soccer team leaders, this is a problem that is threatening to wipe out a whole generation of youth. In addition, it is a major contributing factor to the numerous cases of violence, both general and gender based as well as high crime rates in the Sub County. Most of the 55 young men who attended the seminar easily identified with the experiences described by the facilitator who is himself a young recovering addict. The youth appreciated the fact that for once, someone was not condemning or stigmatizing them but instead acknowledged and understood the challenges they were going through as they tried to get out of a problem that the society does not understand. It was particularly helpful for them to learn that their inability to get out of the addictions they were battling with was not a reflection of weakness on their part. They realized that they needed professional help and they called on CEEC to follow up with more initiatives that would help them reclaim their lives again.

The project Youth and Governance: Enhancing Youth Participation in the 2017 General Election through the Sauti Mtaani Platform within Nairobi County, entered the pre-election phase in 2017. This phase aimed at helping the youth make informed choices during the August 8^th General Election by facilitating engagement between them and MCA aspirants through the Sauti Mtaani platform. To ensure they understood how the platform works, a total of 23 MCA Aspirants were taken through an induction process in May and June 2017. The induction process included the rationale behind the project and a practical step by step demonstration of how the Sauti Mtaani platform works. The aspirants lauded the platform as a very innovative and effective way of complementing their efforts of reaching a huge segment of the electorate. They all agreed that this is a platform that would help them easily articulate their agenda for the youth while at the same time saving them a lot of time and money since they did not have to organize physical meetings.

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On 4^th June 2017, the Gicharani Stadium in Karai Ward was packed with an excited crowd which had come to cheer on their teams as they battled it out for the CEEC sponsored Gender Champions against Gender Based Violence cup. This was under the DKA Austria funded project Positive Masculinities Project Working with young men to combat Gender Based Violence in Kiambu County, Kenya”. The bonanza was a culmination of tournaments which ran between February and June 2017 in the five wards in the Sub County namely Kikuyu, Karai, Kinoo, Sigona and Nachu. It brought together the two top teams per ward and attracted over 600 soccer fans. The fans cheered their teams while chanting “Say No to Gender based Violence!” a slogan that was visible on the football jerseys worn by the players and banners hung around the field. The message was loud and clear – violence in all its forms is unacceptable at all levels of society. With the general elections only two months away, the youth were implored to maintain peace in their homes, within their teams and in the community. Maybe with home ground advantage, Homeboys FC from Karai Ward were declared the 2017 Champions against Gender based Violence after beating Barcelona FC from Nachu Ward in a penalty shoot-out. The winning team got a trophy and a set of uniforms, No. 2 got a set of uniforms, Nos. 3 and 4 got shin guards while Nos. 5-10 received soccer balls. The methodology of using an activity that is very popular with the youth, soccer, has proved very effective in getting the message across while at the same time nurturing talent.

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