1 State of Kenya Population Report Challenges, Opportunities and Recommendations

Challenges  Lack of a coordinated framework for the management of emergency situations based on clear mandates and responsibilities  Lack of effective coordination in both preparedness and response due to the fragmented nature of operations  Government’s investment in disaster risk management remains inadequate to deal with prevention, preparedness and response before, during and after disaster occurs  Community-based disaster preparedness remains low while traditional indigenous knowledge for disaster risk reduction remains untapped 2

Challenges  One of the key challenges in the health sector identified in the MPT I is weak health information systems. The current HIS provides limited information for monitoring health goals, and empowering communities and individuals with timely and understandable information on health and its related interventions 3

Challenges  Lack of comprehensive and up-to-date national data base on displacement, as there is no centralized IDP-related data collection system and the government has never carried out an exercise to profile IDP numbers and locations throughout the country 4

Challenges  The overriding challenge on Kenya’s future, with respect to the management of emergency situations, lies in the full implementation of the Kenya Constitution 2010, so that mitigation mechanisms can be put in place 5

Opportunities  There has been an increase in wealth of knowledge and experience on how to break negative cycles posed by increased hazards, exposure and poverty  The government has adopted integration approaches as the most plausible mitigation mechanism to linking disaster risk reduction with sustainable development, e.g. Ending Drought Emergencies (EDE) project that is being implemented by the National Drought Management Authority 6

Opportunities  The adoption of the IDP Policy is a crucial component of the creation of a credible and functioning response framework  Although Kenya participated actively in the preparation of The Kampala Convention, she is still to sign and ratify the AU Convention on the Protection and Assistance of IDPs better known as the “Kampala Convention”  The ratification of the Kampala Convention may be the opportunity to re-launch such discussions at institutional level 7

Opportunities The Kenya Emergency Humanitarian Response Plan advocated for the integration of humanitarian priorities into national structures and development plans because disaster risk reduction (DRR) is interlinked with various SDGs 8

Recommendations - short term  Review and update the draft IDP Policy before its adoption, in order for it to be brought in line with the IDP Act, and other international policy and legal frameworks  Consider the adoption of a regulation to assist the operationalisation of the IDP Act and introduce a requirement of submission of quarterly reports to increase institutional accountability of the NCCC  Review and clarify the reporting channels and modalities of the NCCC, including the role of county authorities in implementing the IDP Act, beyond the Fourth Schedule of the Constitution 9

Recommendations - short term  In compliance with the Kampala Convention, consider allocation of adequate resources in the national budget to address the phenomenon of internal displacement, and provide relevant authorities, including county governments, with the necessary financial means to assist IDPs when responsibility is assigned to them  Clarify county governments’ responsibilities in relation to the protection and assistance of IDPs in order to address the lack of clarity over the coverage of expenditures related to IDPs at the local level 10

Recommendations - short term  Maintain an up-date register of all IDPs within the jurisdiction or effective control of county and other local authorities  Consider signing and ratifying the AU Convention on the Protection and Assistance of IDPs (“Kampala Convention”) 11

Recommendations - long term  Political commitment should be demonstrated through declaration, legislation, institution-building, public policy decisions and programme support at the highest level of national politics  Capacities to prevent and mitigate crisis situations should constitute a national infrastructure for emergency situation mapping, prevention, mitigation and response at all levels  A comprehensive and up-to-date database should document all disasters, conflicts, and displacements in Kenya and provide a basis for risk mapping, vulnerability assessments, and development of emergency plans focusing on all aspects of DRR

Recommendations - long term  There is need to establish county-based affirmative action programmes to provide access to and use of services by vulnerable populations  It is time to move focus from response mode (crisis management) to prevention mode (risk management) by effectively practicing DRR as provided for in the Sendai Framework of 2015  There is need for urgent policy and programme framework to implement the Sendai Framework

14 Recommendations  Hence the need for a single framework that will specifically deal with issues of management of emergency situations in the country