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Please be aware that the content herein has not been peer reviewed. It consists of personal reflections, insights, and learnings of the contributor(s). It may not be exhaustive, nor does it aim to be authoritative knowledge.
Title
Please provide a name for your action learning plan.
Water Security: Harnessing Data for Climate Resilience in Kenya
Challenge statement
Challenge type: If you are working on multiple challenges, please indicate if this is your "big bet" or "exploratory" challenge.
Please note: we ask you to only submit a maximum of 3 challenges - 1x Big Bet, 2x Exploratory. Each challenge must be submitted individually.
BIG BET
Challenge statement: What is your challenge? (Please answer in specific terms: "Our challenge is that...”.)
Our challenge is that water scarcity in Tana River County has contributed to resource-based conflict between herders and farmers.
Background: What is the history of your challenge? What is causing or driving it? Who is involved? How does the current situation look like? What undesired effects does it produce?
Kenya, a nation grappling with water insecurity exacerbated by climate change, faces imminent threats to vulnerable regions, including Tana River County. The region heavily depends on pastoralism as a predominant economic pursuit, and its non-arable land amplifies the potential for conflicts over scarce resources. This situation is further exacerbated by unpredictable rainfall patterns and persistent drought conditions. Compounding the challenge is a history of insecurity stemming from ethnic disparities in resource control, sparking conflicts between pastoralists and farmers. Situated in the coastal region of Kenya, Tana River County is particularly vulnerable due to its heavy dependence on climate-sensitive renewable natural resources. Tana River County, characterized by dry, drought-prone nature, coupled with erratic rainfall, leads to intensified conflicts during livestock migrations in search of pasture and water. Pastoralists, relying on earth pans and boreholes, frequently clash with farmers during livestock migrations triggered by drought. The broader landscape of rapid population growth coupled with water insecurity amplifies the country's vulnerability to climate change. Limited capacity to cope with climate change impacts and historical conflicts between farmers and pastoralists further exacerbate its vulnerabilities.
Quantitative evidence: What (official) data sources do you have on this challenge that better exemplifies the importance and urgency of this frontier challenge? You can add text, a link, or a picture.
In 1992, Kenya was categorized as a water scarce country; available water resources were calculated at 647 m3 per capita, below the internationally acceptable threshold of 1,000 m3. The situation has worsened since alongside rapid population growth. By 2010 it was only 586 m3 per capita and it is expected to fall as low as 293 m3 per capita by 2050. Kenya is thus critically exposed to the adverse effects of climate change, particularly in the arid and semi-arid areas of the country (ASALs). This is anticipated to increase existing vulnerabilities in agriculture and forests, as well as in livestock and dryland water resource management. Conflicts in arid and semi-arid zones over water resources, which are already significant, are likely to increase.
Qualitative evidence: What weak signals have you recently spotted that characterizes its urgency? Please provide qualitative information that better exemplifies the importance and urgency of this frontier challenge. You can add text, a link, or a picture.
Value proposition: What added value or unique value proposition is your Accelerator Lab bringing to solving this challenge? Why is it your Lab that needs to work on this challenge and not other actors within UNDP, other stakeholders in the country respectively? Why is it worth investing resources to this challenge?
The Lab has identified 2 priority stakeholder groups: herder-farmer communities and county government. As a result, we are proposing the following value proposition statements:
Community: By generating data on water access, levels and use, we will help herders and farmers make better decisions on water management, advocate for water infrastructure budget allocations and respond to climate-related events.
Government: By generating data on water levels, access and use, we will help national and county governments make evidence-based decisions on water infrastructure projects, budget allocations and respond to climate-related events.
Short “tweet” summary: We would like to tweet what you are working on, can you summarize your challenge in a maximum of 280 characters?
This year, Tana River County & UNDP Accelerator Lab harnessed citizen data to tackle water scarcity in Kenya. 🌍💧Discover our journey with diverse communities, from local herders to the National Drought Management
Authority 👉
Partners
Who are your top 5 partners for this challenge? Please submit from MOST to LEAST important and state Name, Sector and a brief description of the (intended) collaboration.
Please state the name of the partner:
Tana River County Government
What sector does our partner belong to?
Government (&related)
Please provide a brief description of the collaboration.
Water scarcity and sustainable water governance are topics that call for transdisciplinary approaches, as they are characterized by high complexity, urgency and contestation. For us to understand this issue, we intend to engage various county government departments in co-creating the data platform and ensuring that it meets the needs of the county government.
Is this a new and unusual partner for UNDP?
No
Who are your top 5 partners for this challenge? Please submit from MOST to LEAST important and state Name, Sector and a brief description of the (intended) collaboration.
Please state the name of the partner:
National Drought Management Authority (NDMA)
What sector does our partner belong to?
Government (&related)
Please provide a brief description of the collaboration.
NDMA is the national government lead agency tasked with overall coordination over all matters relating to drought risk management and to establish mechanisms, either on its own or with stakeholders, that will end drought emergencies in Kenya. With this partnership we intend to
Is this a new and unusual partner for UNDP?
No
Who are your top 5 partners for this challenge? Please submit from MOST to LEAST important and state Name, Sector and a brief description of the (intended) collaboration.
Please state the name of the partner:
Kenya Community Support Centre (KECOSCE)
What sector does our partner belong to?
Civil Society
Please provide a brief description of the collaboration.
The collaboration with KECOSCE
Is this a new and unusual partner for UNDP?
No
Who are your top 5 partners for this challenge? Please submit from MOST to LEAST important and state Name, Sector and a brief description of the (intended) collaboration.
Please state the name of the partner:
Pwani University
What sector does our partner belong to?
Academia
Please provide a brief description of the collaboration.
The collaboration with Pwani University seeks to provide a platform for work experience among university students while testing projects as an avenue for the same.
Is this a new and unusual partner for UNDP?
No
Learning questions
Learning question: What is your learning question for this challenge? What do you need to know or understand to work on your challenge statement?
Can herders and farmers generate data and use it to advocate for more water resources?
Can the county government generate data on water resources and use it to inform decision-making?
To what stage(s) in the learning cycle does your learning question relate?
Sense, Explore, Test, Grow
Usage of methods: Relating to your choice above, how will you use your methods & tools for this learning question? What value do these add in answering your learning question?
The methods and tools will be deployed through a phased design-led approach and field work.
Existing data gaps: Relating to your choice above, what existing gaps in data or information do these new sources of data addressing? What value do these add in answering your learning question?
Merging ethnographic data and geospatial will give us a holistic view of the water situation in the county while taking into account community needs.
Closing
Early leads to grow: Think about the possible grow phase for this challenge - who might benefit from your work on this challenge or who might be the champions in your country that you should inform or collaborate with early on to help you grow this challenge?
The end goal is to create a collaborative platform of water resources to inform decision making on allocation of water resources. Civil society actors will use the data to inform their programming. Academia will also use the data for research purposes.
END OF ACTION LEARNING PLAN: Thank you! The form saves automatically and your submission has been recorded. You may now exit this window.
1No poverty
6Clean water and sanitation
13Climate action
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