Malindi, 28th March 2023 – The second phase of the 'Malindi Integrated Social and Health Development Programme' (MISHDP) initiative was officially launched today during an event organized by the Coastal Development Authority (CDA) of Kenya. The ceremony was held in Malindi at the presence of Mr. Giovanni Grandi, Head of the Italian Agency for Development Cooperation (Aics) in Nairobi, H. E. Gideon Mung'aro, Governor of Kilifi County, Idris Dokota, Permanent Secretary of the Department of State of the Arid and Semi-Arid Areas and Economic Development of Kenya, representatives of the CDA, local authorities and the beneficiary community.
The event marks the beginning of an important initiative which aims to accelerate the development of Malindi and Magarini sub-counties in Kilifi through interventions in the sectors of education, health, and infrastructure and for the strengthening of local institutions. The initiative is financed by Italy through a subsidized loan worth 6.4 million Euros, and is implemented by the CDA. The interventions include, among others, the construction of a tarmac road, which represents the only access route to the Ngomeni peninsula and is therefore of strategic importance for the economy of the entire area, the construction of an intensive care unit at the Malindi Hospital, the construction of classrooms and the introduction of an award scheme for young students.
The first phase of MISHDP was financed by the Italian Cooperation and implemented by the CDA: it ended in 2012 and was focused on the development of Malindi and Magarini. This first phase saw the construction of basic infrastructures in the health, education and infrastructural sectors in the areas adjacent to the "Luigi Broglio" Italian Space Center in Malindi, recently visited by the President of the Republic of Italy Sergio Mattarella.
'The first series of interventions was conceived as a first step towards the integrated development of the area' said Giovanni Grandi, Head of Aics Office in Nairobi. 'Through phase II, the Italian Cooperation intends to renew its support to the Government of Kenya in its efforts to improve access to basic services for the population, according to the approach of partnership that defines the relationship of friendship and cooperation between Italy and Kenya'.
Giovanni Grandi, Head of Aics Office in Nairobi, during his speech at the launch ceremony of MISHDP II program in Malindi
Giovanni Grandi and Idris Dokota, Permanent Secretary of the State Department of Arid and Semi-Arid Areas and Economic Development of Kenya, interact with local press and media
Family picture with partners, stakeholders and local authorities involved in MISHDP II
During the months of March and April 2023, nine Beach Management Units (BMUs) located across five coastal counties in Kenya will receive a total of 26 fiberglass boats, that will allow them to boost their catches and increase related income. The provision of fishing inputs, including boats and fishing equipment, is one of the core activities within the Italian component of the EU-funded Go Blue Programme, implemented by the Italian Agency for Development Cooperation (Aics) in a technical partnership with the Mediterranean Agronomic Institute of Bari (CIHEAM Bari). Promoting the enhancement of fisheries co-management and of the fisheries value chain is one of the key objectives of the initiative, which stems from the recognition of the great potential that the blue economy has for the growth of Kenya. Fishery is in fact identified by the Kenyan Government as a sector with significant potential to spur national economic growth in its key economic blueprint, the Vision 2030.
The lack of adequate equipment represents one of the major constraints affecting small-scale fisheries in Kenya: due to the lack of owned boats, fishermen are generally obliged to pay a rental to use equipment from middlemen, sometimes at very high prices. In addition to that, fishermen have to cover the costs of fuel. These expenses clearly impact the revenues deriving from fishing.
With the ambitious objective of improving the small-scale fishery value chain at all levels, with special attention to the cold chain management, the Italian component of the Go Blue Programme is targeting the most challenging phases of the value chain, from the moment of capture, through the provision of boats, cool boxes and equipment, through the collection points, with the provision of cold storage facilities, access to clean water and cold rooms to ensure correct conservation of products, to the retail phase, by providing street vendors with cool boxes to ensure fish is well preserved under cold conditions. Aics is also working with the County Government of Lamu and Mombasa counties to build two fish markets that will ensure that target BMUs have improved access to markets. The infrastructure will be built in strategic areas to serve as agents of change and boost the development of the fishery value chain.
‘Our component is very ambitious, and we have designed it in a way that the multiple challenges currently affecting the small-scale fishery value chain can be addressed through a set of targeted and different interventions’ says Paolo Damato, component lead of the Italian intervention within the Go Blue Programme. ‘These actions range from the construction of infrastructure as enablers of change, to the provision of fishing inputs, from the introduction of improvement across the cold chain, to the realization of training activities for fishermen.’
In a view of ensuring sustainability, Aics is also working with CIHEAM Bari and the Jumuiya Ya Kaunti Za Pwani (JKP Secretariat), the local stakeholder, a mechanism to ensure that the boats delivered to BMUs can be managed through a sort of revolving fund where boats can generate a capital managed by the BMU to allow fishermen to acquire additional boats.
‘The blue economy is a driving factor of Kenya's development policy and a sector where the Italian Agency for Development Cooperation is planning to invest more in the future’, says Mr. Giovanni Grandi, Head of Aics regional Office in Nairobi. ‘It is our responsibility to use the blue economy in the most sustainable way while capitalizing its positive impacts on food security, healthy diets, environmental sustainability, and women empowerment. We stand by Kenya in putting small-scale actors at the heart of blue economy policies: our aim is to ensure that the community-led Beach Management Units established by the Government of Kenya are put in the position to adequately manage the ocean and its resources.’
The Italian component of the Go Blue Programme can build on the existing similarities between Italy and Kenya regarding the blue economy utilization and the efforts both countries are putting in place to ensure a sustainable use of the coastal resources and ecosystems: both countries have long coastlines, and both invest in significant economic activities related to the blue economy, such as fisheries, aquaculture, and tourism. The countries have developed policies and initiatives to promote the sustainable use of blue economy resources and to support the growth of related industries; the Go Blue Programme opens great opportunities to capitalize best practices and experiences to ensure shared lessons learnt and development.
The President of the Republic of Italy Sergio Mattarella started his official visit to Kenya on the 14th of march, kicking off a three-day event full of institutional meetings and ceremonies. The President is accompanied by a delegation composed of his daughter and first lady of Italy Ms. Laura Mattarella and the Deputy Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, Edmondo Cirielli, among the others.
During the mission, Deputy Ministry Cirielli and Ministry of Treasury of Kenya Njuguna Ndung'u are expected to launch the "Kenya-Italy Sustainable Development Partnership" (Kisdp), a strategic document indicating the line of intervention of the Italian Cooperation with Kenya for the next five years, defining a medium-term indicative programmatic framework for the cooperation between the two countries.
During President Mattarella's mission, two additional agreements between Kenya and Italy are expected to be signed, marking the launch of as many cooperation initiatives: the first, "Professional and Scientific Training for the Development of Cultural Tourism", financed by the Italian Agency for Development Cooperation (Aics) and realized by the National Museums of Kenya in partnership with La Sapienza University of Rome, concerns the implementation of a three-year training program for young Kenyan students. The second initiative, "Kenya Informal Settlement Redevelopment Programme" (Kirsp), concerns an integrated urban development intervention to improve access to basic services in the informal settlements of Kajiado, Kilifi and Siaya counties.
President Mattarella and the delegation will visit some of the Italian Cooperation's leading projects in the country, such as the St. Kizito Vocational Training Institute financed by the Cooperation in 1994 and managed by AVSI, which trains 800 young Kenyans every year through courses in IT, mechanics, plumbing, carpentry, catering, secretary, electronics, hairdressing, and beauty care. The Cooperation has deeply invested in the growth of the Institute allowing for the construction of the building, the supply of equipment, the start-up and various stages of expansion, allowing the Institute to consolidate and to offer young disadvantaged people adequate training, which would otherwise be inaccessible in most cases. The mission includes a visit to the E4Impact Accelerator founded in 2018 in Nairobi thanks to Aics support and through the Sacro Cuore Catholic University of Milan, which has quickly become a point of reference in Kenya's entrepreneurial ecosystem: it is of a hub offering legal, financial, training and mentoring services to businesses and start-ups, contributing to their growth and creating new synergies with international markets and investors.
"It is a real honour to welcome and follow the visit of President Mattarella and the delegation", says Giovanni Grandi, Head of Aics regional office in Nairobi. "This is an enormous privilege and a key opportunity to boost the consolidated friendship between Italy and Kenya. The launch of the multi-year strategy represents a milestone for Italy's cooperation with one of its priority countries, and the visit to the initiatives through which the Agency invests in business creation, employment, and in training young people are the concrete example of a cooperation that creates partnerships between businesses, universities and institutions and which looks at young people as builders of development of an increasingly resilient Kenya".
"Medium and Small Enterprises are the beating heart of Kenya's economic development," explains Mario Brataj, Program Officer for Economic and Private Sector Development at Aics Nairobi. "They contribute to almost 80% of GDP and represent around 70% of total employment. The young and dynamic entrepreneurial tissue needs support to best express its potential: for this reason, support to employment creation and expansion of small businesses is one of the pillars of our action in the country. At the same time we invest in human capital through the strengthening of vocational training institutes. An example of this approach is the experience of St. Kizito, which was built and consolidated thanks to the support of the Italian Cooperation and today it acts as a bridge between young people and the job market. The Institute collaborates today with 70 companies, carries out school-work alternation and promotes internships. In collaboration with Avsi, Res4Africa and Enel Green Power, Aics is also promoting the installation of a micro-grid that will make the Institute an excellence for training activities on renewable energy in Kenya and East Africa".
Photo of President Mattarella's visit to the St. Kizito Vocational Training Institute, financed by the Italian Cooperation, during the first day of his trip to Kenya. © Quirinale
We went to Adjumani, a district in Northern Uganda at the border with South Sudan. We have followed the path that refugees take when they enter Uganda, starting from the moment of registration immediately after crossing the border until their arrival in the refugee camps. Where Aics intervenes in support of refugee and host communities
The border
To cross the border between South Sudan and Uganda from the Ugandan district of Amuru, you have to walk on a bridge over a completely dry river, crowded with trucks, motorcycles, animals, sellers of everything, soldiers, dust. From the Ugandan side, we only managed to cover half of it; the South Sudanese military then sent us back.
Every month, hundreds of people cross this bridge fleeing South Sudan, a country still reeling from a 5-year civil war, internal tensions and consecutive years of record floods that have caused one of the most serious humanitarian crises on the continent, with about 2 million internally displaced people and 2.2 million seeking protection in neighbouring countries.
Once passed the strict controls of the military on the bridge, you arrive at the Ugandan border offices. It's hard, even for us, not to feel relieved noticing the huge red sign above the offices: WELCOME TO UGANDA.
Collection Point
Elegu Collection Point is located 300 meters from the bridge. Here, the Ugandan authorities of the Office of the Prime Minister (OPM), the entity managing the refugees’ reception system, together with UNHCR and a medical team register the newly arrived refugees and carry out the first health checks, administering vaccines if necessary, including the one against Covid-19.
Elegu is just one of the access points on the border between Uganda and South Sudan. Francis Kirya from the Ugandan OPM tells us that in Elegu alone they had registered 646 new arrivals in January 2023.
While he’s showing us the identification cards and bracelets to entitle refugees to receive food from the World Food Program (WFP), Francis sees behind us that a South Sudanese family is entering the Center: they walk slowly but decisively. They are nine; seven children, their mother and her brother.
‘How long did you have to travel to get here?’ we ask them, sensing their exhaustion in the burning equatorial heat.
'One month', answers the only boy who speaks English; 'we took a bus that crosses the whole country, we couldn't afford any faster vehicles’.
At the Elegu Center, each family member is registered on a platform through fingerprints. This system serves to identify refugees in a global database, where security checks are carried out by the intelligence services.
In the evening, the family will be taken to the Nyumanzi Reception Centre.
Reception Center and assignment to camps
At the Reception Center, newly registered refugees will spend a few days before being transferred to one of the camps nearby. Each family is assigned temporary housing; there are communal sanitary facilities and WFP daily distributes food aid. There is also an emergency medical center and a small playground for children.
Life in the camps
Uganda is the African country hosting the highest number of refugees: more than 1.5 million according to the 2021 census, of which 65.3% comes from South Sudan. Francis explains that assignments to the different camps are made based on availability and with attention not to mix conflicting tribal groups. Once in the camps, refugees are assigned small plots of land that can be used for subsistence farming.
According to UNHCR data, as of December 2022 Adjumani District alone hosted about 280,000 asylum seekers and refugees, registered in 18 camps. Of those, 86% were women and children. This is precisely the area where the Italian Agency for Development Cooperation (Aics) concentrates its activities in support to refugees and hosting communities.
'Through our Civil Society Organizations present on the field and in collaboration with the local authorities, we intervene with training and business creation activities for young people, developing income and livelihood opportunities often through the collaboration between South Sudanese refugees and Ugandan hosting communities. We also promote actions that can facilitate the conditions for an eventual return to the country of origin to help its reconstruction,' explains Giovanni Grandi, head of Aics Office in Nairobi. 'In this way, we support Ugandan policies encouraging the integration of refugees and mitigate possible tensions that may arise between the two cohabiting groups, and which stem mainly from the joint use of the natural resources.'
The adoption of measures to prevent and mitigate tensions between Ugandan and South Sudanese communities is essential where, due to protracted insecurity conditions, the South Sudanese refugee population is gradually settling in Uganda. The story of Grace, 35, is emblematic in this sense: Grace arrived 31 years ago as a refugee in Uganda, and still nowadays she is a resident in Elema camp (Adjumani district). Here, Aics is supporting the realization of infrastructural interventions, including the installation of water supply systems and the renovation of spaces to host community recreational activities. 'These interventions have also helped to reduce conflicts between refugee and host communities,' she says, referring in particular to the well built by Africa Mission - Cooperation and Development (C&S) right behind our backs.
Grace is now a community leader, and she works as a translator at Elema health center, 'because the language barrier often creates problems of understanding between Ugandans and South Sudanese,' she explains. Grace completed primary and secondary education in Uganda. She has five children and has built her own house within the camp. 'The Ugandan refugees’ reception system works, they make refugees feel comfortable. My home, however, remains in South Sudan; my dream is to go back there one day, if there will ever be peace,' she confides to us as she looks far away.
***
Aics in Uganda intervenes with an emergency initiative aimed at promoting the integration of displaced, returning and refugee South Sudanese populations. The project intervenes in the refugee camps of Adjumani district through the renovation of community centers for young people and women and the construction of new water supply systems. The initiative also promotes agricultural activities and trade to improve the income of refugee families; some activities specifically target the integration between refugees and host communities to support peaceful coexistence. The initiative started in September 2022 and has an expected duration of 20 months; it is implemented by Africa Mission - Cooperation and Development in consortium with the Jesuit Refugee Service.
The entrance to the Collection Center in Elegu, Northern Uganda ©M. Watsemba/AICS Nairobi
OPM's Francis Kirya explains how the registration process works in the Elegu Center ©M. Watsemba/AICS Nairobi
One of the women's community centers renovated by Aics and C&S at Nyumanzi Camp, Adjumani District ©M. Watsemba/AICS Nairobi
Refugees at the Reception Centre waiting to receive lunch distributed by WFP ©M. Watsemba/AICS Nairobi
A water system financed by Aics at the elementary school of Elema refugee camp, Adjumani district © M. Watsemba/AICS Nairobi
Grace, 35 years old, has lived in Elema refugee camp for 31 years ©M. Watsemba/AICS Nairobi
Grace shows us her home in Elema refugee camp ©M. Watsemba/AICS Nairobi
Nairobi, 8th december 2022 – This morning the 'SEMAKENYA II' program financed by the Italian Cooperation was officially launched at the Residence of the Italian Ambassador in Nairobi, H.E. Roberto Natali. The initiative will support the introduction of conservation agriculture practices and 'Climate Smart' technologies in Makueni County, located in one of the arid and semi-arid areas of Kenya. The initiative is worth 2 million Euros and will be implemented through the Mediterranean Agronomic Institute of Bari (CIHEAM Bari) in partnership with the Agricultural and Livestock Research Organization of Kenya (KALRO).
The event counted on the participation of the Governor of Makueni County, H.E. Mutula Kilonzo Jr, the Deputy Director of CIHEAM Bari, Biagio Di Terlizzi and the Managing Director of ENI Kenya, Enrico Tavolini. Among the participants, the Head of the Nairobi Regional Office of the Italian Agency for Development Cooperation (AICS), Giovanni Grandi, and various representatives of the Italian private sector, local institutions and civil society.
'SEMAKENYA II' will be 'a resilient path towards agroecology in Makueni County’ through the promotion of environment-friendly agricultural practices and the valorisation of drought-tolerant local crops, such as legumes and tropical fruits, which also have a strong potential in terms of commercialization on the international markets. Planned activities include the introduction of a digital platform that will directly connect farmers and buyers, with the aim of ensuring a fairer business for farmers and a quality product for consumers.
'SEMAKENYA II' represents the first implementation of the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed by Eni Kenya and the Nairobi office of AICS in 2021, regarding the involvement of the "Italian System" of development cooperation and the private sector in the implementation of cooperation initiatives. SEMAKENYA II will contribute to the decarbonisation process implemented by ENI in the country through an initiative supporting the introduction of sustainable oil crops, such as castor, and the opening of processing plants for the extraction of industrial oil. The oil will be subsequently exported to Italy for the production of biofuels, opening up new income opportunities for local farmers.
H.E. Roberto Natali, the Italian Ambassador in Nairobi, has opened the launch ceremony of the SEMAKENYA II project
Participants at the ceremony included representatives from AICS, from the Embassy of Italy to Kenya, from ENI Kenya, CIHEAM Bari, Makueni County e the Ministry of Agriculture of Kenya
Giovanni Grandi, Head of Aics office in Nairobi, together with H.E. Mutula Kilonzo Jr, Governor of Makueni County, where the SEMAKENYA II project will be implemented
Nairobi, 29th June 2022 – This morning, the agreement between the Nairobi regional office of the Italian Agency for Development Cooperation (AICS) and the Global Health Center of the Meyer University Hospital has been signed. The Center is the hub for international health cooperation initiatives of Tuscany Region, Italy. The program is worth an investment of 5.5 million Euros in total, and it aims to develop a regional health network in Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda to improve the quality and access to health services for women and children. The initiative plans to intervene on over 30 health facilities, covering a total population of about 6.2 million people in the three countries.
The agreement was signed by the Head of AICS office in Nairobi, Mr. Giovanni Grandi, and the Director of the Global Health Center, Ms. Maria José Caldés Pinilla. The program is funded by the Italian Cooperation, and the Global Health Center is the technical and scientific coordinator also in charge of monitoring and evaluation activities over expected results.
The initiative will be realized in partnership with the Ministries of Health of the three countries and aims to strengthen south-south and north-south collaboration through the exchange of good practices, knowledge sharing activities, data collection and performance evaluation. In addition, the project will intervene with infrastructural interventions and supply of medical equipment aimed at enhancing health centers functioning and the management of obstetric-neonatal emergencies. Finally, technical assistance and training activities at national and regional levels will be realized.
The Covid-19 pandemic has highlighted how global challenges cannot be faced with local responses, and how health is key for human development. The Italian Cooperation promptly responded to this need by implementing a program targeting the most vulnerable sections of the population in the three countries, and in particular women and children.
Dar es Salaam, 15th June 2022 – This afternoon the Italian government and the Tanzanian government signed the agreements that officially kick off an important program worth around 20 million euros disbursed through a soft loan that will promote the creation of new employment opportunities for young people through the strengthening of technical and vocational education in Tanzania. The agreements were signed by the Ambassador of Italy in Tanzania, Marco Lombardi, and the Principal Secretary of the Ministry of Finance and Planning of Tanzania, Emmanuel M. Tutuba, at the presence of the representative of the Italian Agency for Development Cooperation (AICS) in Tanzania, Paolo Razzini, and a delegation from the Italian Cassa Depositi e Prestiti (CDP) composed by Dr. Antonella Baldino and Dr. Lisbi Carina Valdez, who flew to the country to sign the financial agreement. The agreements see the Embassy of Italy in Tanzania, CDP, the Ministry of Finance and Planning of Tanzania and AICS put their efforts together to strengthen different technological institutes through the creation of new training courses that can enhance employment opportunities for young people, while strengthening the technological innovation.
The Italian Cooperation in Tanzania has intervened in the past with a grant program concluded in 2014 aiming at improving the quality of teaching and learning in scientific and technological education, with a special attention to promoting women access to this type of education. This new initiative stems from the success of the previous one and means to significantly contrast the phenomenon of youth unemployment. Planned activities include the creation of four Centres for Entrepreneurship, Innovation and Technology Transfer (CEITT), which will include start-ups incubators and laboratories for innovation; the creation of new training programs at the Dar Es Salaam Institute of Technology (DIT) in the fields of energy, civil engineering, tourism and agriculture; the creation of a centre of excellence in leather processing technologies; the creation of new curricula in technologies for renewable energies and for environmental protection and conservation.
The initiative intervenes in sectors of excellence for Italy, as it covers areas in which the Italian System has developed a high-level expertise representing an added value within the creation of strategic partnerships between the two countries (professional training, artistic-cultural heritage preservation, technologies for renewable energies, conservation techniques of agricultural products).
Nairobi, 12th of April 2022 – The Ambassador of Italy to Kenya, Alberto Pieri, and UN Women Regional Director for East and Southern Africa, Maxime Houinato, signed this morning the Agreement to officially kick-start the third phase of the project “Let it not happen again: Enhancing Prevention and Response to Violence Against Women in Elections”. The event counted on the presence of Mr. Giovanni Grandi, Head of Office of the Italian Agency for Development Cooperation in Nairobi, Ms. Anna Mutavati, UN WOMEN Country Representative for Kenya, representatives from the Ministry of Public Service, Gender, Senior Citizen Affairs & Special Programmes, representatives from the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Right (OHCHR), from the National Police Service and from the civil society.
With this new phase the overall initiative is worth a commitment of more than 1 million USD from the Government of Italy, which has greatly contributed to strengthen the response and accountability mechanisms with regards to gender-based violence (GBV) in sensitive periods such as the elections and the COVID pandemic in the counties of Nairobi, Kisumu, Bungoma and Vihiga.
As Ambassador Pieri said, “the strategic partnership between the Italian Agency for Development Cooperation (Aics), UN WOMEN and OHCHR ensures on one hand the reinforcement of the capacities of key public institutions and on the other hand the empowerment of civil society organizations and human rights defenders’ associations in their advocacy efforts towards duty bearers”.
According to Dr Houinato, “In Kenya, electoral violence has been predominant since the introduction of multi-party democracy in the early 1990s. The “Let it Not Happen Again” project will address persisting challenges that hinder access to justice for survivors, building on the previous implementation.”
The Government of Italy is one of UN WOMEN’s top donors and stands with Kenya in the fight and prevention of gender-based violence: the promotion of gender equality is a priority and transversal theme for the action of the Italian Cooperation in Kenya.
Brief background info
“Let it not happen again: Enhancing Prevention and Response to Violence Against Women in Elections” is financed by the Government of Italy and represents the third phase of the "Let It Not Happen Again" initiative. The first two phases were focused on improving the access to justice for victims of GBV and in particular during electoral periods, while strengthening the institutional mechanisms for prevention and response. Concurrently, the initiative has intervened to strengthen civil society organizations engaged in human rights defense.
Among key results achieved during the first two phases (2019 – 2021) are the establishment of the first Gender Directorate at the National Police Service; the enhancement of the capacities of 484 professionals in the sectors of justice, security and health in the prevention and response to sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV) and the improved access of survivors to essential services, with 930 SGBV survivors accessing medical-legal services.
Nairobi, 12th of April 2022 – The Ambassador of Italy to Kenya, Alberto Pieri, and UN Women Regional Director for East and Southern Africa, Dr. Maxime Houinato, signed this morning the Agreement to officially kick-start the third phase of the project “Let it not happen again: Enhancing Prevention and Response to Violence Against Women in Elections”. The event counted on the presence of Mr. Giovanni Grandi, Head of Office of the Italian Agency for Development Cooperation in Nairobi, Ms. Anna Mutavati, UN WOMEN Country Representative for Kenya, representatives from the Ministry of Public Service, Gender, Senior Citizen Affairs & Special Programmes, representatives from the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Right (OHCHR), from the National Police Service and from the civil society.
With this new phase the overall initiative is worth a commitment of more than 1 million USD from the Government of Italy, which has greatly contributed to strengthen the response and accountability mechanisms with regards to gender-based violence (GBV) in sensitive periods such as the elections and the COVID pandemic in the counties of Nairobi, Kisumu, Bungoma and Vihiga.
As Ambassador Pieri said, “the strategic partnership between the Italian Agency for Development Cooperation (Aics), UN WOMEN and OHCHR ensures on one hand the reinforcement of the capacities of key public institutions and on the other hand the empowerment of civil society organizations and human rights defenders’ associations in their advocacy efforts towards duty bearers”.
According to Dr Houinato, “In Kenya, electoral violence has been predominant since the introduction of multi-party democracy in the early 1990s. The “Let it Not Happen Again” project will address persisting challenges that hinder access to justice for survivors, building on the previous implementation.”
The Government of Italy is one of UN WOMEN’s top donors and stands with Kenya in the fight and prevention of gender-based violence: the promotion of gender equality is a priority and transversal theme for the action of the Italian Cooperation in Kenya.
Brief background info
“Let it not happen again: Enhancing Prevention and Response to Violence Against Women in Elections” is financed by the Government of Italy and represents the third phase of the "Let It Not Happen Again" initiative. The first two phases were focused on improving the access to justice for victims of GBV and in particular during electoral periods, while strengthening the institutional mechanisms for prevention and response. Concurrently, the initiative has intervened to strengthen civil society organizations engaged in human rights defense.
Among key results achieved during the first two phases (2019 – 2021) are the establishment of the first Gender Directorate at the National Police Service; the enhancement of the capacities of 484 professionals in the sectors of justice, security and health in the prevention and response to sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV) and the improved access of survivors to essential services, with 930 SGBV survivors accessing medical-legal services.
Kisumu (Kenya), 18th May 2022 – During the first day of the Pan Africa conference ‘Africities’, dedicated to sustainable urban development, the Italian Agency for Development Cooperation (AICS) Office in Nairobi has participated in the session dedicated to the nexus between the blue economy and intermediary cities. AICS has presented the cooperation initiative "Go Blue" financed by the European Union, aiming to stimulate a debate with the various representatives of local and subnational governments present at the panel on the potential offered by the coastal resources for the sustainable development of the country. The session was organized by UN HABITAT with the participation of AICS and the economic bloc of coastal counties (JKP Secretariat), and counted on the participation of various members of the Council of Governors, the organization bringing together the governors of Kenya’s 47 counties. The panel offered a unique opportunity to stimulate an interactive dialogue with local and subnational authorities on themes such as territorial development, knowledge sharing and coastal cities growth, and has represented a precious opportunity for the Agency, who has an important portfolio of initiatives underway in the sectors of urban regeneration, slum upgrading, improvement of social services, construction of infrastructures, creation of employment in Kenya and Africa.
The session was focused on the unexploited potential of the resources offered by the blue economy: according to the 'Nairobi Statement of Intent on Advancing Global Sustainable Blue Economy', oceans, seas, lakes, rivers and other water resources are key assets for achieving the ambitious goals set in the 2030 Agenda by the United Nations.
Mr. Paolo Damato, coordinator of the Italian component Paolo of the Go Blue Programme, started the debate by recalling the theme characterizing this ninth edition of the Africities Summit ("The Role of Intermediary Cities of Africa in the implementation of Agenda 2030 of the United Nations and the African Union Agenda 2063'') and highlighting the importance of secondary cities in a context like Africa, interested by very rapid urbanization processes and with a rapidly growing population often concentrated in intermediary cities. He then underlined how the strategic relevance of investing in intermediary cities has been acknowledged by development partners: intermediary cities have indeed the potential to catalyse the growth of entire regions. If on one hand these cities have less resources and possibilities to invest in long-term strategic planning, on the other hand they can drive inclusive and balanced economic development in different ways - for example, they are more easily manageable in comparison with megacities, and communities are generally more structured due to their sizes.
The session then concentrated on the nexus between the blue economy and intermediary cities, with a focus on the Go Blue initiative: the Italian Cooperation component intervenes in fact to support the economic development of coastal cities by strengthening the blue economy value chains. It was emphasized that while investments in the blue economy have the potential to catalyse the development of the Kenya coast, an adequate operational environment is also required, with efficient waste management systems that can actually preserve coastal and marine environments and enable the development of fishing and tourism; a network of urban and regional infrastructures to support the logistics for the blue economy development; a resilient urban planning to manage rapid urban growth.
Some representatives of the Board of Governors underlined the importance of identifying knowledge sharing mechanisms in order to be able to benefit from the best practices developed within the Go Blue Programme, also to possibly incorporate lessons learned in sectoral policies.
Damato stressed that within the Go Blue Programme AICS encourages a constant stakeholders’ engagement, promoting dialogue with the private sector, with research centres and universities, passing through the authorities and with the involvement of the local communities.
The CEO of the JKP Secretariat, Mr. Emmanuel Nzai, reaffirmed the importance of policy dialogues with County governments to improve interventions’ sustainability, and underlined that Go Blue is developed in accordance with the local development strategies (the 'County Integrated Development Plans').
The Coordinator of UN HABITAT for the Go Blue Programme, Mr. Florian Lux, stressed that the interventions carried out within the initiative are complementary to the actions already undertaken by local governments, so that UN HABITAT catalyse the investments already adopted at local level.
Finally, all participants agreed on the success of the event and on the fact that continuous dialogue coupled with the involvement of all stakeholders is essential for the success of cooperation initiatives.
