Kenya: Northen Kenya: A new approach

Social cohesion and social change: building bridges of understanding

The Ministry of State for Development of Northern Kenya and other Arid Lands is tasked with addressing the ‘unique challenges’ facing its area of responsibility. These challenges have their roots deep in Kenya’s past, and specifically in the creation of the Northern Frontier District by the colonial regime. This set in motion a pattern of uneven and separate development which resulted in significant inequalities in the enjoyment of basic rights between those in the north of country and those elsewhere, as well as a gulf in understanding between different Kenyan communities.

The Ministry is concerned not just with improving the material conditions of life in Northern Kenya but with tackling the underlying causes of impoverishment and exclusion. This will only be possible when there is greater understanding and empathy between social groups in Kenya, and when this understanding and empathy in turn shapes public policy choices. The violence which followed the 2007 elections showed the risks of ignoring inequality and social fragmentation, and the significance of these issues to the future of the nation. Organisations such as the Centre for Multi-Party Democracy are already implementing programmes which address this central concern.

The Ministry intends to lead and facilitate a process whereby diverse citizens’ groups, civil society networks, private sector organisations and communication professionals, as well as the people of Northern Kenya, can come together to debate these issues and to design and deliver a long-term strategy that will enhance social cohesion. While government leadership is critical, these are not issues in which government has a core competence, hence the intention to work in partnership with others.