Turkana Deputy Governor Dr John Erus has called on development partners and other organizations operating in the county to formalize their engagements with the County Government through comprehensive Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs) that include clear mechanisms for resolving grievances and disputes.
Dr Erus said formal agreements would help strengthen accountability, improve coordination and prevent disagreements between development partners and local organizations from disrupting programmes targeting communities.
He further advised locally based Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) implementing programmes on behalf of other development partners to first sign MoUs with the Turkana Development Trust (TDT), before entering into similar agreements with the organizations they’re implementing projects for.
The County Government currently works with TDT as the umbrella organization coordinating local organizations and civil society groups operating in Turkana.
Dr Erus cited previous cases in which strained relationships between national and local implementing partners resulted in funding cuts and the suspension of interventions, saying such disputes ultimately hurt the communities meant to benefit from the programmes.
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“Through the Directorate of Partnerships and Resource Mobilization, we demand that all partners running projects with local CSOs do so within the framework of a comprehensive MoU with an in-built grievance and complaints handling mechanism,” he said.
The DG spoke during a meeting between the Adventist Development and Relief Agency (ADRA) and APIR, which focused on strengthening collaboration between the two organizations.
The meeting was also attended by representatives of the CSO network in Turkana.
ADRA Country Director Nitin Pappachen and Programme Manager Peter Nguura welcomed the county government’s approach, saying the framework could provide a structured avenue for resolving disagreements between local and national implementing partners.
According to Nguura, changing donor requirements make it necessary for primary partners and local CSOs implementing programmes to maintain consistent documentation and reporting of actions and decisions throughout project implementation.
APIR CEO Harrison Ekeno also backed the call for transparent working relationships between local implementing organizations and primary project implementers.
Ekeno welcomed the involvement of the umbrella body representing CSOs in Turkana as a mediator when disputes arise between implementing partners.
The meeting was attended by Deputy Director for Partnerships Mike Aupe, Jerry Ekimwormor from the Administration Department and Simon Enyapu from Protocol.
Representatives of the Turkana CSO Network, including Lynus Nakiporo, Philip Ekolong and Lokiru Lomongin, also attended the meeting.
