Turkana and West Pokot County governments have reaffirmed their commitment to peace, cross-border cooperation, and resilience among pastoralist communities following a one-day consultative meeting in Lodwar.
The forum that was organized in collaboration with the Danish Refugee Council (DRC) brought together senior county and national government officials alongside development partners.
Key speakers included Turkana Central Deputy County Commissioner Rodgers Otieno, West Pokot County Executive Committee Member for Land, Housing, Physical Planning and Urban Development Esther Chelimo, West Pokot Chief Officer for Special Programmes Daniel Lopale, and other senior officials from both counties, along with representatives from DRC and Caritas Lodwar.
Turkana Chief Officers Moses Korea (Office of the Governor) and Janerose Tioko (Resource Mobilization and Partnerships), along with officers from the peace, livestock, and disaster management dockets, and administrators from Loima and Lokiriama also attended.
In his remarks, Korea stressed the need for closer collaboration between the two counties in addressing cross-border conflict, pastoralist movement, and pressure on shared resources. He highlighted the role of the Directorate of Peace Building and Conflict Management in driving preventive dialogue between communities and local administrators.
Closing the meeting, Tioko said lasting peace and development depend on coordinated action across county and national government, communities, and development partners, and urged partners to back government-led initiatives rather than run parallel efforts.
The meeting produced three concrete action points: a review of the conditions attached to Kenya’s 14 approved inter-county and national cross-border routes used by pastoralists; a proposed joint visit to the Kalomwae mining area to support peacebuilding following recent Turkana-Pokot conflict; and steps to strengthen El Niño preparedness for pastoralist communities.
By Peter Gitonga
