RRF, Kenya | Peace Direct

Dekha’s Story

In the early nineties, fighting was spilling over from Somalia in to the Wajir District of Northern Kenya . Dismayed at the rising violence, Dekha and other local women decided that, at the very least, the market should be safe for people of any clan. Dekha and her team established ground rules for the market, bravely monitored them and were on hand to intervene in conflict. Dekha started to involve clan elders, putting them at the forefront of discussions about wider conflicts and eventually, after 1,500 deaths, the violence was brought to an end.

In 2007 presidential elections led to widespread unrest, denting the country’s reputation for stability. A power-sharing government is now in place.

How the Kenya Rapid Response Fund works

Money, entrusted to local peacebuilders gives them vital funds in position, on the ground, so they can react immediately to conflict flashpoints.

Facilitated a ceasefire in Nakuru district, allowing the road to the main market to reopen giving thousands of people access to food again. Three local peace committees were created in villages to manage future conflicts.

In March 2007, 300 houses were burnt and four people killed in a conflict in Tana River district. The Kenyan Rapid Response Fund deployed a respected and experienced elder to help diffuse the tension between farmers and pastoralists. Although a difficult negotiation, the fund initiated a long term consultative meeting to agree on land and water use in Tana River.

In January 2008, violent clan clashes following the disputed election 1,500 people were killed, and 600,000 forced to flee their homes. As riots broke out the Rapid Response Fund gathered together a hugely influential group of trusted public figures and their forums up and down the country gave ordinary Kenyans a voice, providing Kofi Annan with crucial grassroots information.

We say

“ Violence doesn’t get put on hold while someone processes funding for peacebuilding. Conflict can escalate very quickly so speed is everything in sharing information and acting quickly.”

Jul 2009 Rapid Response Funds – Lessons learnt

The Rapid Response Fund (RRF) concept recognises that in a conflict situation you need to act quickly and that people on the ground have the best knowledge of how and where money needs to be spent. With this in mind, the RRF was set-up to provide local committees with money which they could spend without prior approval by a donor. This approach eliminated the delay of requesting funds from overseas funders and gave committees, made up of well-informed and capable local people, executive decision making over conflict interventions.

Independent evaluation of the RRF’s has now been completed and overall the RRF has been seen to be a positive intervention and the main criticism is not so much with the concept itself but the way it was managed and especially recorded. It has proven to be difficult in all cases to adequately identify the impacts of the RRF and information has been lost. As such, the true impact and activity of the RRF has not always been reflected in the evaluations and this needs to be addressed in the future.

To read the evaluation of Rapid Response Funds in full click http://www.peacedirect.org/wp-content/uploads/rrf-lessons-learnt.pdf

To read the evaluation of the Kenya Rapid Response Fund in full click http://www.peacedirect.org/wp-content/uploads/rrf-evaluation-kenya-02-06-09-final.pdf

To read the evaluation of the Nepal Rapid Response Fund in full click http://www.peacedirect.org/wp-content/uploads/nepal.pdf

This interactive map shows some of the interventions performed over the last few years by the Kenyan RRF. Use the zoom and navigation buttons to move around the map, and click any marker for more information.

View Kenya in a larger map

Call to Action

Finding. Funding.Promoting.

Jul 2009 Rapid Response Funds – Lessons learnt