Members of the County Gender Sector Working Group and other duty bearers in Samburu county have benefited from a three-day leadership and coaching training organized by the Kenya Finland Bilateral Program in partnership with Mbele consultancy.
The training which focuses on leadership and management, decision making and communication is aimed at empowering members of the County Gender Sector Working Group (CGSWG) and different duty bearers that deal with Gender Based Violence (GBV) matters to be effective leaders while fighting negative cultural practices in Samburu.
Kenya-Finland Bilateral Program Coordinator Josephine Lengopito said that the training is part of the Bilateral program on strengthening prevention and response to all forms of GBV in Samburu County.
“We are empowering them with leadership and management skills and how to link them in the reduction of GBV in Samburu County. They will also attain skills on how they can overcome different challenges, use their influence and opportunities in the fight against Female Genital Mutilation, child marriages and all other forms of GBV,” she said.
Lengopito added that the program has also facilitated the training of 30 Nyumba Kumi members in a community policing course at the Kenya School of Government (KSG) to build their capacity in community interventions such as mediation skills and conflict management.
“We have also trained and awarded 357 duty bearers from different sectors with a certificate in counselling psychology because we have an acute shortage of psychologists in the county.
Rampant insecurity in this region has impacted on mental health in our society and those trained are usually in the frontline to offer psychological first aid support,” she added
The CGSW is a framework established between the national and county government to coordinate gender issues that cut across the two levels of governments and mapping all gender stakeholders to avoid duplication and eliminate briefcase organisations.
By Robert Githu
