CCCC: CSB in Kenya

Publication date: Wednesday 28 September 2005

What are the particular preconditions in your country that enable or obstruct civil society building strategies of your organisation?

Based on your experiences, how do initiatives and strategies of your organisation contribute to improving the responsiveness and performance of the state?

Kenya Country Preconditions

General
Kenya is located in the Greater Horn of Africa and straddles the Equator. It is bounded by Somalia to the east, the Indian Ocean to the southeast, Tanzania to the south, Uganda to the west and Sudan and Ethiopia to the north. Population Census (1998) indicates that there are approximately 30.5 million Kenyans with a growth rate of 2.1% per annum. Women comprise 53% of this population. There are forty-three ethnic communities, with diverse socio-cultural traditions, norms and practices. It is estimated that more than half the population lives below the poverty line. The poverty index is compounded by high HIV/AIDS prevalence, with 700 people dying daily. Kenya still experiences traditional male-female power imbalances; it makes it harder for a majority of women to own land and other assets and to move physically and socially to take advantage of socio-economic and political opportunities. There is no national gender policy, although there is a National Commission on Gender, which has been established by an Act of Parliament and a fully-fledged Department of Gender in the Ministry of Gender, Sports and Culture.

Enabling Preconditions

• Relatively expanded democratic space since the December 27, 2002 General Elections.
• Renewed networking and solidarity among likeminded reformist Civil Society Organisations, e.g. Multi-Sectoral Forum (MSF) Yellow Movement - Silent Revolution.
• Re-discovery of self-esteem by citizens from the 2002 election experience. It revives the moribund `Nationhood Project'. Hitherto, the Kenyan political class used negative ethnic nationalism (Tribalism) as a tool for political survival and retention of State power. Contestation for State power was informed by ethnic consciousness as opposed to issues.
• Impact of a National Civic Education Programme (NCEP), implemented from 2001 to 2002. Greater sense of democratic civic culture inculcated among majority of citizens as manifested in voting pattern in the 2002 elections. Kenyans openly make their views known on a range of governance issues.
• Establishment of Civil Society fronted statutory Kenya National Commission on Human Rights. Allows for strategic alliances and solidarity on issues e.g. transitional justice.
• Impact of the Constitutional Reform movement. Kenyans were widely consulted on how the Kenyan State could be re-constituted and deconstructed. This has heightened interest and awareness on Constitutional issues.
• Liberalised airwaves and a relatively free investigative print and electronic media. There is Media Council and media practitioners are organized into trade unions.
• Community Based Organisations (CBOs) continue to emerge stronger and stronger. They complement the efforts of the larger NGOs such as 4Cs and are the key partners in the establishment of State de-regulating community networks at the local level.
• A middle class threatened with marginalisation by the upper class political elites holding State power. They are being run out of sharing in spoils of State power. They are notable allies in efforts aimed at de-regulating the Kenyan State.

Inhibitive/Obstructive Preconditions

• Abortive popular revolution of the 2002 General Elections. The National Rainbow Coalition (NARC) inspired regime change, but has betrayed the revolution. There are no revolutionary leaders in power but revivalists and retrogressive elements.
• Challenges of new political dispensation. There is schism in Civil Society. Those who embrace the sense of arrival (mission accomplished) and those cautiously optimistic. Strategic leading lights of Civil Society have been co-opted or elected into government. Consequence, a Kenyan Civil Society suffering from Ecstatic Paralysis Syndrome (ECSPASY).
• State social engineering to marginalize citizens from governance and developmental processes, e.g. impasse and legislative gerrymandering on Constitution Review Process.
• Systemic reengineering of tribal cleavages by the political enjoying State power.
• Intra-political party wrangling within (NARC) and bringing elements from the defeated former ruling regime and other parties into Government. This has spilled over into the Kenyan Civil Society
• A self-serving National Assembly where reformist legislators are outnumbered, outmaneuvered, or compromised.
• National instability. There is systemic insecurity with resurgence of xenophobic tribal conflicts and organized crime. These are symptomatic of State inspired violence.
• Debilitating poverty conditions. Citizens, prioritize survival and existentialism.

Interventions Towards Improving Responsiveness & Performance of State

• Development of a long term Strategic Plan (10 years, 2003 -2013). Systemic process - based approaches (SPA) foster sustainable social transformation and attitudinal change unlike episodic and eclectic interventions. SPA is the path to engender a reality in which Kenyan citizens internalize culture of constitutionalism, effectively contribute to, participate in and benefit from their society.
• Adopting methodology focusing on organic building, changing and renewing of indispensable citizens institutions but not expendable organizations. Community Organising Tool (COT) is applied to realize this at the local level. The State is thus held accountable from below.
• The Score Card Strategy, where citizens' institutions as in 3.2 above undergo critical analysis skills training and are facilitated to audit and report on State performance at the community level. The core of this strategy is exposure of State and its rating.
• Strengthening networking of likeminded Civil Society Organisations in the Democracy and Human Rights sub-sector to revert to watchdog role vis-a- vis the State. Initiative augmented with solidarity linkages with likeminded regional and international Civil Society Organisations.
• Facilitating linkages between community level citizens' institutions, multi-disciplinary middle class, policy formulation and national State organs. The State's national development agenda and priorities are thus informed from below.
• Utilization and application of participatory interactive theatre/drama.
• Embracing Information Communication Technology (ICT), e.g. martus and other interconnectivity tools including Internet and Cellular phones. Secures information flow and discrete communication.

Conclusion
On the whole, the 4Cs has, over the years adopted a variety of policy positioning in its relations with the Kenyan State. The overall pattern can be said to be constructive engagement. This is however in constant state of flux depending on whether the State is responsive and sensitive to citizens' aspirations and needs and whether it adheres to principle tenets of democracy, transparency, Constitutional governance, respect for human rights including women's rights and rule of law. In instances where the State is hostile, issue-based non-violent confrontation as in the case of Constitution Review Process is applied. Usually in such hostile situations the Low Profile High Impact Mechanism (LOPHIM) is resorted to. It is where citizens are discretely facilitated to organize around issues of common concern and then to pile multi-pronged popular pressure on the State to deliver on the issue.

At times strategic opportunities present themselves like in situations where there is confluence of interest between Civil Society and particular State organs. There are a number of examples to illustrate this, including collaboration in developing of legal frameworks, which led to the establishment of such statutory commissions as Constitution of Kenya Review Commission (CKRC), Kenya National Commission on Human Rights, the Gender Commission, the Council of Persons with Disability and elevation of the Women's Bureau to a fully-fledged Department in the Ministry of Gender, Sports and Culture. The role of Civil Society has been to provide intellectual, technical and professional inputs. The stance adopted by the 4Cs in such situations is arms-length constructive engagement as a caution against the danger of State manipulation or co-option. The policy then is to relate only on strategic issues of commonality, without seeking seats or positions within institutions being related to. The criterion is that engagements with the State are on basis of one-off technical inputs and thereafter disengagement is the rule of thumb.

ANNEXURE

The Citizens Coalition for Constitutional Change (4Cs): Organizational Profile
Established on 7th July 1994 and formally incorporated in 2002 in the Republic of Kenya as a Trust; the Citizens Coalition for Constitutional Change (4Cs), is a national membership organization with successful track record in popular constitutional reform, democratic constitutional governance and the rule of law, managed by firmly committed and capable professionals and community level volunteers. The organization was founded to work towards creation and maintenance of a new constitutional order in Kenya that will guarantee a better society desired by all citizens through a democratic process that is popular, open, participatory and inclusive. The 4Cs is a non-governmental, voluntary, non-partisan and not-for-profit social movement, with a vision of a Kenyan society that upholds practices and protects constitutionalism and democracy; where citizens participate in just governance, human rights are protected, gender equity is ensured, interests of the disadvantaged are guaranteed and a sustainable wholesome development is promoted. The 4Cs sees its mission as being to promote a just constitutional order in Kenya and empower its citizens to equally contribute towards this process.

The foundations of the 4Cs operations are its Constitution; Trust Deed, Directive Principles on Governance & Institutional Operations (DPGIO); Organisational Gender Policy and Strategic Plan 2003 - 2013. The Annual General Meeting (AGM), elected Steering Council with five Co-Chairs and Standing Management Committee of the Secretariat are the key governance organs of the 4Cs. Current programmatic and institutional directions of the 4Cs include, Constitutional Education and Peace Programme; Political Empowerment and Governance Programme; Political Leadership Development Programme; Citizens Rights Advocacy Programme; Gender Mainstreaming; Resource Mobilization; Institutional Development and Governance; Staff Development; Citizens Resource Centre; Publicity and Networking.