ADS-Central Rift has over the past several years worked with partners to implement community led Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) and Peace Building initiatives in the Counties of Baringo, Samburu and Laikipia. The initiatives mainly focus on enhancing resilience and sharing of early warning information in selected areas within the counties which are occasionally affected by drought and conflict over resources. The continuous conflict and drought in these counties usually leave communities vulnerable and in dire need of basic needs like food and water as well as sustainable livelihood options which help them be resilient and adapt to hazards.
In the recent past, emerging, and re-emerging disasters have had far reaching consequences to the pastoralists due to lack of community emergency preparedness and response plans. ADS-Central Rift has also started implementing projects under the Supporting Community-Led Response (SCLR) model whereby groups within communities are empowered to lead the response activities in their communities by; building their capacities on Community Managed Disaster Risk Reduction (CMDRR), book-keeping, reporting giving them micro-grants to implement their communities’ most urgent interventions. Also, ADS-Central Rift has established 12 Community Disaster Risk Management Committees (CDRMCs) and 4 Peace Committees (PCs) in Baringo, Laikipia and Samburu counties and which functions at local levels in their respective ethnic communities. For sustainability, these committees are linked to the relevant county and national government departments. To foster peace, ADS Central Rift has been supporting inter-ethnic dialogue forums in volatile areas by ensuring that the bordering communities come together and discuss the issues that affect them. As part of the discussion the committees are reminded on their connectors (what brings them together) and dividers (what brings conflict) as two neighboring communities.