Experience & Lesson learned : Regional Resilience Enhancement Against Drought

(RREAD ) Program

EU-US Experience Sharing/ Dialogue forum for stakeholders on food security/Agriculture dev

6-7 December 2012, Dire DawaCARE International

I. Program description I. Program description

1. Objective: - Community structures & local government bodies are able to

implement appropriate emergency preparedness plans- Local & national actors are engaged to manage the natural

resource base to mitigate drought & other crises- Livestock based livelihoods are supported to become more

resilient to drought & other crises- Learning feeds into improved policy & practice for DCM at

district, national & regional levels

Program description contdProgram description contd

2. Intervention location - Southern Ethiopia & Northern Kenya

3. Funded by - Echo Drought Decision

4. Target beneficiary - Pastoralists & vulnerable groups (Children, women & pastoralist girls) & pastoralist dropouts

5. Key approach of the program- Participatory approach & Cross border approach

6. Major focus of initiatives- Community Managed Disaster Risk Reduction (CMDRR) process &

Community lead peace initiatives- Improved rangeland management & improved access to water- Creating sustainable livelihoods income diversification opportunities

II. The initiatives II. The initiatives 1. Community Managed Disaster

Risk Reduction (CMDRR) & community lead peace initiatives

• Capacity building of local government & traditional institutions to conduct harmonized assessment & develop Community DRR & contingency plans linked with local government plan

• Process implemented @ community level with participatory approach

• Facilitation for adoption & integration into district/woreda plans

• Strengthen civil & governmental institution and the ability to promote dialogue between conflicting ethnic group

2.2. Improved rangeland management & access to water (cross Improved rangeland management & access to water (cross border Communities)border Communities)

• Participatory mapping of key natural resources

• Cross border community trainings/ learning visits on NRM

• NRM regimes, devised and driven by the community users (and in collaboration with authorities), have considerable conflict transformation potential.

• Rehabilitation and management of strategic water points &training for water user association

2.2. Improved rangeland management & access to water Improved rangeland management & access to water

LESSONS LEARNT LESSONS LEARNT

•Programmes should link with both traditional and formal governance institutions. •Sensitisation on the importance of inclusive planning – including social and gender diversity and different interest groups – is crucial to joint planning•Engage the commitment of local government by building capacity of local institutions on issues such as risk assessment and adaptive planning

3.Creating sustainable livelihood income diversification 3.Creating sustainable livelihood income diversification opportunitiesopportunities

• training and support has been provided to groups in livestock products processing and management

• Savings and loans women groups (GS&L) developed & trained in order to enhance business skills and enterprise activities

• Economic empowerment, through supporting engagement in more diversified livelihood activities,

• Some activities have enhanced skills in hay preservation and meat processing, which can then be marketed to supplement income from livestock

2. 2. Improved rangeland managementImproved rangeland management contd contd

LESSONS LEARNTLESSONS LEARNT

•Improving access to markets, supporting viable economic alternatives to diversify livelihoods away from reliance on a single source of income and sustainable natural resource management are vital support processes•Hay making and storing process throughout the year make the self help activities less vulnerable to climate risks in times of drought since it ensures feed supply from the process•CARE has learned from other work in the region that, if diversification is pursued, it requires careful planning and risk assessment .

III. Best practice of the ProgramIII. Best practice of the Program

• The involvement of technical leaders from local (formal) government agencies & traditional leaders supported the implementation and monitoring of community resource management plans

• Engaging both formal & non formal institutions & process can be a successful resilience building approach

• Joint introduction of regulation of grazing & water use (which makes the availability of pasture & water for three critical months in the drought period) -Burduras & Hardura

• The initiative has huge potential to further improve the adaptive capacity of pastoralists

• Increased collaboration to preserve rangeland and land-based resources (pasture, browse and water) has enhanced the security of fodder and water for livestock, thus mitigating the impact of drought

• Improving the strength of links between different levels of governance has enabled productive cross border peace committee

Best practice continued…..Best practice continued…..

• Strengthening and expanding the existing cross-border relations between communities through organising meetings between cross border committees have helped to address conflict between communities.

• However , it is vital that external support to cross-border peace and natural resource management committees is based on ‘a thorough understanding of their roles, functions and rules, their accountability and representation, their impact on other institutions and the underlying development vision towards which they are working’.

• Traditional/ indigenous knowledge is a key to food security: Working with women’s group to rejuvenate old techniques i.e. provision of training with new skills and access to financial capital, women are able to earning a profit from preserving and selling meat.

IV. The Way forwardIV. The Way forward

• A need for more integrated a approach to address multiple risks with emphasis on gender, conflict sensitivity, governance & economic security

• Resilience building in the dry lands must be approached through an institutional as well as technical lens, recognizing the need to work within socio-ecological systems and across the border

• The several core principles to support approach that build resilience are as follows-Capacity to manage risks and uncertainties to inform effective decision-making.-Good governance based on rights and on decentralized and participatory decision-making with sound links between levels of governance.-Partnerships that drive collective action.-Local traditional knowledge with science and technology for learning and innovation.-Working across scales with a particular focus on socio-ecological systems.

Thank youThank you