Co-Creation & Co-Funding of Joint Workplans with County Governments Improves Accountability and Sustainability in Northern Kenya

LMS operates in five Counties in Northern Kenya (Isiolo, Marsabit, Garissa, Turkana, and Wajir). This region of Kenya has historically been marginalized politically, and the arid/semi-arid climate subjects leaves citizens vulnerable to drought, desertification, locust invasions, and other shocks, which are further exacerbated by the refugee influx from South Sudan and Somalia. Climate difficulties are compounded by the devolution of authority to the County Governments in 2010, who are now responsible for policy, legislative, institutional, and administrative matters to meet their obligations to their constituents. County governments have been hindered by a lack of sufficient technical legislative capacity, absence of proper systems and structures, and a lack of clear guidelines on the process of formulating legislation. LMS is contributing to strengthening these weaknesses and facilitating the enabling of the counties to perform their functions through various capacity building initiatives. This context combined with USAID KEA’s shift to locally led development created an opportunity to adapt LMS’s work-planning process to include the County Governments more substantively. By being inclusive and involving the County Governments, relationships with County Governments have improved, increasing trust, and more efficiently pooling resources to achieve long-lasting results. The new planning process has led to better results and will ensure sustainability as LMS moves into its final year of implementation in 2022. LMS has gained notoriety from USAID and County Governments for the new process and are witnessing other programs adopt the work planning process.