Summary
Young people remain a major target for recruiters of violent extremism in the coastal region of Kenya. Together with a number of stakeholders, including the beneficiaries themselves, Dream Achievers Youth Organization is implementing a programme to make these youths more resilient, through trainings in business skills and financial literacy and to empower them to promote peace and peaceful coexistence in their communities, despite existing diversity. In this example DAYO describes how they approached this project, after completing their training in Mobilising Support offered by Kenya Community Development Foundation, national partner of Change the Game Academy in Kenya.
Problem analysis
Youths remain a major target for recruiters of violent extremism in the coastal region. People who join are between ages 12 to 40.
“In December last year, police in Kisauni, Mombasa arrested 50 youths aged between 12 and 17 years who were members of a notorious criminal gang known as Wakali Kwanza whose machete-wielding members carried out daylight robberies. Other criminal gangs in the Majengo area were linked to drugs. There are several likely causes of the increase in youth's involvement in criminal activities that not only the Government, but society must address. No doubt, poverty levels occasioned by high unemployment rates despite more youth having access to education precipitate crime. Idle, educated youth are more inclined to resort to crime, violence and drugs to make ends meet and to kill time."
“Against the backdrop of deep economic deprivation and political marginalization of young people in the county, Mombasa and the coastal region have increasingly been labelled a “hotbed” for radicalization to violent extremism, The literature widely refers to unemployment, economic deprivation, and political grievances as central drivers of violent extremism and urges the design and deployment of P/CVE (Preventing and Countering Violent Extremism) programming interventions that target these drivers to build resilience in communities vulnerable to violent extremism.”
Solution analysis
The SAVET (Shrinking The Space Against Violent Extremism Thriving) project, building on last year’s project implementation, experiences, milestones, challenges and recommendations will continue to promote both religious and social values of productivity, self-dependence, inter-dependence and tolerance to diversity:
1) Through training and awareness raising the project seeks to expose the youths from the hotspots in Kisauni to numerous economic opportunities for self-dependence.
2) It shall also promote joint community activities such as games, art and drama to enhance social cohesion.
3) The youths shall have opportunities to interact with religious leaders, community elders, government officials, political leaders, business owners, civil society organisations and youthful role models for exposure, mentorship, partnership and collaborations. This will give them an opportunity to share their views and experiences, gain important knowledge about social and economic opportunities, learn new skills and receive mentorship and motivation for positive and progressive living. It is postulated that apart from contributing towards shrinking the space against violent extremism thriving and contributing to the Mombasa Action Plan this efforts and interventions will in turn reduce youth vulnerabilities to violent extremism in the targeted areas.
Stakeholder analysis
Which stakeholders (NGO’s, government, private sector) did you identify as allies and how did you involve them?
County commissioners, assistant county commissioners, district peace committees, village elders, local administration, police, civil society organisations in PCVE (preventing and countering violent extremism) e.g. KECOSCE, MUHURI, HAKI AFRICA, faith based organisations e.g. Coast Interfaith Council of Clerics.
Which stakeholders did you identify as neutral and how did you mobilise them?
Ministry of Health, some churches, some civil society organisations, including microfinance.
Which stakeholders did you identify as opponents and why were they opposed?
Juvenile gangs (Wakali kwanza , Pio pio, chafu, Wajukuu wa babu, etc.); radical clerics; parents of the members of juvenile gangs and/or radical groups.
How did you involve your beneficiaries in the stakeholder analysis/campaign?
The youth beneficiaries from the hot spot areas in Kisauni have been involved in the different phases of the project:
Phase 1: Involved in informal interviews before the project commenced to help define the problem and possible solution. This helped articulate their voices during the phase of proposal writing.
Phase 2: The empowerment of the youth through trainings in business and financial literacy, training as thespians to advocate for peaceful co-existence, training as peace champions to help monitor peace and security situations in the different wards in Kisauni Sub-county and reporting the same to the security channels and during feedback meetings with recommendations on possible ways of mitigating challenges.
Short description of the organisation implementing the action/campaign
Dream Achievers Youth Organization (DAYO) was founded in 2005 as a theatre-performing outfit by young people who saw the need of using art to raise awareness on the issues affecting adolescents and young people in Mtopanga area of Mombasa. Due to the increased need to expand its area of intervention, DAYO was later registered as a community based organisation (CBO) in 2009. DAYO has over the years grown to participate at local, national and regional spaces with regards to Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights (SRHR) advocacy, policy implementation, livelihood related projects (which include peace and security), education and social justice, all in line with the aforementioned thematic areas.
DAYO’s vision is a community where youth are free from diseases and poverty and it’s mission is to build capacity and response by preventing and reducing the risks of diseases and socio-economic situations among young people in the region.
Currently, DAYO is implementing projects in 5 counties of Mombasa, Kilifi, Kwale, Kisumu and Nairobi. The projects that have been implemented so far include but are not limited to:
• Rapid HIV Testing and Prevention program from 2014-2016;
• Youth Empowerment Project 2013 (Rebranded in 2017 as Y-BIZNA) that sought to train vulnerable young people from informal settlements of Kisauni sub-county on financial literacy and business skills. Y-BIZNA also offers start-up capital and links the beneficiaries to financial institutions.
• Changamka na Sanaa project that used communications and arts campaign aimed at inspiring and provoking youth to use their voting power to occasion change that benefits their generation 2017.
• KUZA project( Imarisha Vijana Centre) from 2015-2017 which established a one-stop centre where young people could access information, training on financial literacy and the job market, referrals to financial institutions and mentorships.
• 2018 -2020 Right Here Right Now network, an alliance of various advocacy organisations that seeks to help realise the right by young people to access adolescent/youth-friendly services in an environment where they can also freely express their sexuality.
• 2019 -2021 Shrinking the Space against Violent Extremism Thriving (SAVET) Project that builds the capacity of vulnerable youth to embrace non-violent options for conflict mitigation as they unite communities and contribute to the development within their communities.
Action period
December 2019 – June 2021
Objectives
1. To empower youths living within violent extremism hotspots in Kisauni to promote peace and peaceful coexistence despite their diversity.
2. To support youths economic empowerment for resilience against violent extremism.
Action results
1. Held a three-day inter-wards football tournament hosting four rival teams at the infamous Pama Sharp Bamburi football pitch.
2. In partnership with the Department of Youth, Sports, Culture and Gender held the first Youth Annual Economic summit.
3. Mounted three graffiti murals with peace messages in the violent extremism hot spots in Kisauni.
4. Trained 25 youth peace champions from the five wards in Kisauni.
5. Trained and mentored 50 youths from violent extremism hot spot in Kisauni on business skills and financial literacy.
Description of preparatory activities
1. Mapping of stakeholders.
2. Convening of a stakeholders meeting for project inception, securing their buy in and support.
3. Beneficiary identification and profiling with the help of gatekeepers i.e. local administration and village elders.
Description of implementation
1. Training of the beneficiaries on:
a) Business entrepreneurship and financial literacy skills.
b) Thespian refresher and PCVE (preventing and countering violent extremism messaging.
c) As peace champions.
2. Linking the trained young entrepreneurs with financial institutions and providing mentorship.
3. Staging of participatory theatre performances in the community to spark conversations on roles of community in PCVE.
4. Mounting of graffiti murals with PCVE messaging while engaging the community in conversation around the same.
Description of time investmen
5 days a week for those involved
Costs
|
Activity
|
Activity cost
|
|
1. Beneficiary identification meeting
|
56,100.00
|
|
2. Programme orientation for PCVE stakeholders: key actors, beneficiaries and network members meeting
|
80,500.00
|
|
3. PCVE training for youth leaders on intra/inter religious strategies and community strategies
|
210,700.00
|
|
4. Tales of old
|
72,000.00
|
|
5. Planning and orientation meeting with ward team coaches and referees
|
9,800.00
|
|
6. Holding of the tournaments
|
373,000.00
|
|
7. Sensitisation of thespians with PVE information
|
23,000.00
|
|
8. Participatory theatre
|
63,000.00
|
|
9. Planning and installation of graffiti
|
212,000.00
|
|
10. Planning meeting with key peace and security stakeholders - Annual Youth Peace Summit
|
23,272.00
|
|
11. Annual Youth Peace Summit
|
314,998.00
|
|
12. Community business clinics to support youths in business and identify potential youths for business trainings and support
|
25,000.00
|
|
13. 5-day training of 25 selected youths on entrepreneurship skills and financial literacy
|
302,500.00
|
|
14. Business and entrepreneur mentorship, coaching and follow up for trained youths
|
73,500.00
|
|
15. Planning meeting with key economic stakeholders
|
23,000.00
|
|
16. Annual Youth Economic Summit
|
308,000.00
|
|
17. Quarterly feedback meetings
|
98,000.00
|
|
18. Stories of change
|
20,000.00
|
|
19. Annual reflection exercises
|
107,480.00
|
|
20. I.E.C. materials development and publication
|
50,000.00
|
|
21. Furniture & equipment
|
370,950.00
|
Follow up
1. Periodic quarterly mentorship sessions with beneficiaries of entrepreneurship and financial literacy training to check on startup business progress, help mitigate challenges and chat plan of action.
2. Periodic visits to the graffiti sites to check on the state of the murals.
3. Quarterly feedback meetings with thespians and peace champions to check on progress of their peace and security related interventions, challenges and drawing of plans of actions.
