USAID/KENYA AND EAST AFRICA: PEACE III PROGRESS REPORT FOR Q3 FY 2016

This process of strategic, joint planning has been a significant learning experience for local partners who are unfamiliar with more process-oriented planning and implementation. Eleven of the workplans have been approved, and partners are due to begin programming. Capacity development for local partners has also been a key area of focus. ISPs were streamlined as part of the planning process, and activities were implemented to respond to priority areas. All nine partners in the Karamoja Cluster were trained by a combined team of Pact and Mercy Corps in Conflict Prevention Mitigation and Response (CPMR), as well as Institutional Strengthening Plans (IAGs) new field team in zones 4 and 5. A CVE trainer has been identified to provide capacity development to PEACE III teams and partners in the Somali Cluster, to support the identification and design of appropriate CVE programming. Cross-border government engagement has also been emphasized, with a focus on sustaining existing peace in corridors that have seen a reduction in conflicts. Examples of such engagement include cross-border intergovernmental meetings between Turkana/Moroto, Turkana/Kaabong, Turkana/Nyangatom, and Chiefs Forum of South Karamoja conflict system. The initiative by the Uganda Police and Moroto District Government to introduce community policing along the border with Kenya has been supported, with training provided to peace committees in Community Policing. Relationships with key local government officials in the Somali Cluster have seen a marked improvement, with numerous requests coming for support. PEACE III is playing an important interlocutor between national and local government functions, and has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with CEWARN, laying the foundations for more detailed discussions on its operationalization. A Communication strategy has been developed to effectively communicate the progress and successes of the program. This strategy outlines the tools and channels that the program will use to communicate to its range of audience. Success stories from processes run in Karamoja and Somali Clusters have been produced as an initial output of this strategy. Despite the challenges faced by the program, including the evolving crisis in South Sudan and the increasing number of terror attacks along the Kenya-Somalia border, there are emerging opportunities that the program hopes to leverage. The Presidential Peace and Development Initiative signed by the Ethiopian and Kenyan governments and supported by UNDP is an important collaborative partner for the program in Zone 4. The new conflict and resilience program set to operate in the Karamoja cluster provides an opportunity for PEACE III to link into IGAD and ensure active collaboration with IGAD-CEWARN. In the coming quarter, the program expects to carry out a number of high-value activities, including a CVE Youth Forum in Mombasa, a follow-on meeting with CEWARN and the National CEWERUs, and the Annual Advisory Committee meeting. Focus on supporting local level government will continue, with an AI workshop planned for Kenya/Uganda governments in collaboration with the national CEWERUs, as well as support to peace processes in Moyale and potentially Garissa. The program will also work to finalize the submission of the remaining 2nd phase workplans for sub-awards, and the grant requisition process for the 11 approved plans to enable the continuation of programming in the local areas.