KAUNTI KUIMARISHA UENDELEVU

As part of the Agency's Journey to Self- 13 COUNTIES Reliance, the USAID and East , , , , , Makueni, , , , , Samburu, West Africa mission issued Kaunti Kuimarisha Pokot and Uasin Gishu Uendelevu (Swahili for “County-Driven TOTAL ATTENDEES Sustainability”), a partnership opportunity 1165; 37% women for local organizations. TYPES OF ORGANIZATIONS • 652 civil society organizations* • 227 individuals • 108 private businesses USAID organized information sessions in • 45 county government officials 13 counties, with more than 1,000 • 35 cooperative societies

participants – thousands more Kenyans * This included community-based organizations, non-

signed up online. governmental organizations, as well as self-help, women’s and youth groups.

TOP DEVELOPMENT CHALLENGES IDENTIFIED ACROSS ALL COUNTIES

Youth Unemployment. Participants across all counties cited lack of economic opportunities for young people as a major challenge. Proposed solutions included: targeted capacity-building/youth empowerment programs that will help build specific personal and professional skills in agribusiness; entrepreneurship/self-employment through technical and vocational education and training; employability and innovation support through hubs and incubators; improving financial literacy; creating and connecting young people to funding opportunities; and establishing industries including value addition and cottage businesses.

Health. Specific health challenges varied by county. For example, in lack of health facilities posed difficulties, while in Kakamega, Kisumu, and Nyeri counties challenges were related to high rates of communicable (e.g. HIV/AIDS) and non-communicable (e.g. cancer, diabetes and hypertension) diseases. Lack of facilities and resources to respond to rising mental illness featured prominently in discussions. Solutions across most counties focused on: building or increasing the number of health facilities; employing more qualified health personnel; investing in continuous capacity-building to improve service delivery; ensuring the availability of health commodities (e.g., drugs and equipment); promoting health through advocacy; improving screening of both communicable and non-communicable diseases; and increasing the availability of affordable services through universal health care.

Governance. All counties cited high levels of corruption as well as lack of public participation and civic education. Proposed solutions to more effective and accountable governance were generally the same across all counties and included: upholding transparency, integrity and accountability on public expenditure; improving civic education (on the role of citizens in governance); enhancing public participation in governance (e.g., through development forums); enhancing access to information for transparency; and creating social audit or project management committees at the community level.

Water. Water-related challenges varied across counties. For example, in Isiolo, Kajiado, West Pokot, and Uasin Gishu counties, drought was the major issue. In Kisumu, Mombasa, Nakuru, and Nyeri the challenges were related to poor access to clean water. Most mentioned solutions included: encouraging water harvesting; increasing water storage facilities; digging water pans and dams to collect surface runoff during the rainy season; drilling boreholes to provide water for household and agricultural purposes; promoting practical and innovative ideas to help households consume less water (Nyeri and Isiolo); increasing forest cover through rehabilitation of water catchment areas; and conserving existing forests (e.g., afforestation and agroforestry).

For questions, please visit the full solicitation: https://www.grants.gov/web/grants/view -opportunity.html?oppId=317009 or email [email protected]

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