Garissa and Turkana Counties convened for their inaugural peer-to-peer learning workshop in Nairobi on February 27-28, 2025. This significant event, focused on “County Coordination Structures for Integrated Settlements Benefiting Refugee and Host Communities,” represents an important development in Kenya’s approach to refugee management.
Strategic Timing and Context
The workshop, facilitated by ReDSS Kenya through the Resilience Rights and Health Project with support from Danish Red Cross and in partnership with Kenya Red Cross, coincided with the Government of Kenya’s launch of the Shirika Plan. This national initiative proposes transitioning refugee camps into integrated settlements, emphasizing the socio-economic inclusion of refugees within Kenya’s protracted displacement context.
Directors from county directorates, county assembly representatives, municipality managers, and liaison officers participated in discussions on the linkage between the Garissa Socio-Economic Development Plan (GISEDP) and the Kalobeyei Socio-Economic Development Plan (KISEDP) with the national Shirika Plan implementation framework.
Area-based Coordination Framework
Keynote speaker Jamin Kusuania presented on Area-Based Programming (ABP) as an alternative to traditional siloed humanitarian and development interventions. ABP addresses multiple needs within specific geographic areas rather than targeting particular population groups, ensuring integrated, multi-sectoral, and context-specific responses.
This approach aligns with Kenya’s 2021 Refugee Act, which formally recognizes counties as essential service providers for refugees. Participants examined case studies from Ethiopia, Uganda, and Jordan, identifying key ABP principles: area-focused approaches, participatory processes, multisectoral integration, adaptability, and sustainability.
The discussion noted implementation challenges, particularly regarding the geographical scope definition, with international agencies often restricting focus to immediate refugee-hosting areas, potentially excluding broader host populations. Both counties are developing legal and policy frameworks to formalize county government leadership in area-based coordination mechanisms.
Implementation Experiences and Lessons
Turkana County representatives shared insights from KISEDP I implementation, noting achievements in socio-economic development and service delivery alongside challenges in financing, coordination fragmentation, and monitoring capacity. These lessons informed KISEDP II’s development, which features:
- Enhanced county government coordination roles through strengthened steering committee and secretariat structures.
- More robust resource mobilization strategies incorporating innovative funding mechanisms.
- A dedicated directorate implementing comprehensive monitoring and evaluation frameworks.
To further institutionalize these improvements, participants recommended enacting a County Development policy to formalize coordination structures, exploring County Assembly endorsement of KISEDP II, and developing regulations for the Turkana County Local Content Act of 2023.
Garissa County’s GISEDP implementation revealed different challenges, including coordination tensions between the Shirika Plan and GISEDP priorities, and differing integration conceptualizations between county and international partners. The county has developed a draft policy to institutionalize county-level coordination mechanisms and is exploring County Assembly endorsement of GISEDP.
Sustainable Resource Mobilization
A critical discussion focused on resource mobilization sustainability given recent shifts in the donor landscape, particularly U.S. government funding policy changes affecting both development and humanitarian sectors. Participants identified several strategic approaches:
- Increasing county own-source revenue generation to support refugee-host community integration.
- Advocating for additional national government revenue allocations that acknowledge refugee-hosting burden on these specific counties.
- Engaging with philanthropic organizations as alternative funding sources.
- Developing private-sector partnerships through investment promotion initiatives.
Legal and Policy Framework Enhancement
Phillip Ogonda from the Refugee Consortium of Kenya led discussions on legal frameworks supporting area-based coordination. While Kenya’s Constitution and the 2021 Refugee Act provide a foundation, the absence of a comprehensive national refugee management policy remains as a critical towards concretizing a coordination framework between national and county governments. Participants proposed practical recommendations such as:
- Amending the Refugee Act to increase county representation on the Refugee Advisory Committee.
- Anchoring KISEDP II and GISEDP in county legislation through county assembly approval.
- Establishing enforceable policy frameworks for county-level coordination mechanisms.
Social Cohesion and Community Engagement
The workshop examined factors affecting refugee-host community cohesion, acknowledging how historical marginalization in both counties has influenced intercommunity relations. Participants identified fair resource allocation, equitable social service access, and meaningful community engagement as essential factors for sustainable integrated settlements. Kenya’s evolving media landscape was recognized as both an opportunity and challenge for promoting social cohesion, with traditional communication channels like radio continuing to play important roles in reaching remote communities.
Establishing Intercounty Coordination
This workshop establishes an important precedent for intercounty collaboration on refugee management. Participants called for institutionalizing this engagement through a technical working group to facilitate ongoing learning, joint advocacy, and coordinated planning.
ReDSS’s support for this partnership lays the groundwork for sustained intercounty coordination that will inform Kenya’s evolving approach to refugee local integration, emphasizing locally led solutions and county government leadership in developing sustainable, integrated communities.
