DONOR COORDINATION FOR KENYA DROUGHT

UNCLAS NAIROBI 001772 SIPDIS AIDAC AFDROUGHT SIPDIS USAID/W FOR AA/DCHA, WGARVELINK, LROGERS DCHA/OFDA FOR GGOTTLIEB, PMORRIS, CGOTTSCHALK, KCHANNELL DCHA/FFP FOR JDWORKEN DCHA/PPM FOR JBRAUSE, SBRADLEY AFR/EA FOR JBORNS ADDIS ABABA FOR JAUGSBURGER BRUSSELS FOR PLERNER ROME FOR FODAG GENEVA FOR NKYLOH NSC FOR TSHORTLEY E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: EAID KE SUBJECT: DONOR COORDINATION FOR KENYA DROUGHT Summary ¶1. Donor agencies and governments, including USAID, have stepped up to coordinate efforts to respond to the current humanitarian emergency in Kenya. In regular meetings, donors share information on funding, activities, and partners in an effort to avoid overlap and gaps in programming. Meetings supplement work by the Kenya Food Security Steering Group (KFSSG) and the U.N. World Food Program (WFP) to disseminate information and chart humanitarian activities. At the highpoint of the drought, donors quickly mobilized and pledged emergency assistance. The performance of the current long rains will determine whether donors pledge additional assistance for emergency drought interventions or direct funding towards recovery activities. End Summary. Donor Coordination ¶2. On April 3, 2006 USAID staff, including USAID/OFDA Regional Advisor and Information Officer and USAID/Kenya Emergency Coordinator, attended a meeting with donor countries and organizations to discuss the humanitarian response to the current drought emergency in Kenya. Donors have met on an informal basis since February in order to strengthen coordination and effectively respond to appeals from the Government of Kenya (GOK) and the United Nations (U.N.). ¶3. Regular meeting participants include donor agencies such as the United Kingdom?s Department for International Development (DFID),the Humanitarian Aid Department of the European Commission (ECHO),and the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (SIDA),as well as representatives from donor governments such as Germany, Norway, France, Italy, and Japan. ¶4. The meetings enhance information sharing among the donors, as representatives present assessment findings and partner reports, as well as current funding commitments and future intentions. This process allows donors to better target assistance and avoid overlap or gaps in programming. One example of successful coordination is the collaboration between USAID and ECHO in the water sector in Wajir District. After discussing needs, locations, and partners, ECHO is supporting water activities in northern and western Wajir and USAID/OFDA is focusing on southern Wajir. ¶5. In addition to funding, donors also informally discuss relationships with U.N. and GOK counterparts, as well as non-governmental organizations (NGOs). Donor response depends not only on needs, but also the capacity of government offices, U.N. agencies, and NGOs to carry out effective interventions. Information received in the meetings assists USAID/OFDA in identifying capable partners in the field. ¶6. Discussions also highlight shared concerns with particular agencies or activities. In the case of challenges with a particular partner, key donors often meet with the partner representatives en masse for added impact. While a consensus among donors on a particular subject is not always reached, nor is that the objective of the meetings, the discussions are always beneficial for learning what other donors are considering. Humanitarian Coordination in Kenya ¶7. The donor meetings supplement the official humanitarian coordination for the drought, led by the KFSSG, which is chaired and run jointly by the Office of the President and WFP. The KFSSG conducts periodic needs assessments, provides humanitarian updates, alerts the government and donors of impending crises, and contributes to emergency appeals. ¶8. While the KFSSG is effective at coordinating the emergency food, water, and health and nutrition responses, thanks primarily to WFP's participation, the steering group is less successful at bringing together information and donors in other sectors. In addition, the KFSSG tends to concentrate on immediate effects of the drought and short-term interventions, rather than the chronic and structural causes of hunger in Kenya. In response to these challenges, key donors consult informally to share information on the current crisis, as well as to share strategies on appropriate responses to the underlying causes of the crisis. Donor Intentions for Kenya ¶9. Humanitarian donors, including USAID, have pledged more than 100 million US dollars (USD) for the drought emergency in Kenya. Contributions have targeted emergency food relief, water and sanitation interventions, animal health programs, and emergency health and nutrition activities. After USAID's FY 2006 food and non-food contribution of 48.2 million USD, the largest contributions to the emergency have come from DFID and ECHO. DFID has pledged an estimated 12.1 million USD for health and nutrition activities, water interventions, and transportation of food aid. ECHO has provided approximately 6.7 million USD to U.N. agencies and NGOs for emergency water operations, relief supplies, and transportation of food aid. ¶10. In recent meetings, donors have commented on the arrival of the long rains in many of the affected areas of Kenya. ECHO and DFID say they will wait until rain and crop forecasts are available in May before pledging additional assistance. If the rains perform well, donors will focus assistance on recovery activities. If they fail, continued assistance will be needed for emergency water, health, and nutrition interventions. Conclusion ¶11. Collaboration and good relations among the donor community in Kenya have strengthened the humanitarian response to the current drought emergency. While information sharing among donors has generated a broad view of the current situation, a more detailed mapping of needs and gaps, particularly in the non-food sectors, remains vital in order to effectively target assistance. USAID will continue to encourage the KFSSG and non-food sector committees to improve coordination and reporting to the humanitarian community. ¶12. USAID will continue to participate in donor coordination meetings and maintain informal contacts. USAID will continue to work with other donors to compile and share information in order to fill in the gaps. BELLAMY