AN ASSESSMENT OF COMMUNITY INSTITUTIONS’ CAPACITIES AND ROLES IN DISASTER RISK REDUCTION AND CLIMATE CHANGE ADAPTATION IN MARSABIT COUNTY

Abstract

World Data tend to indicate that drought disasters which have been largely attributed to climate change are on the increase. The majority of the people affected by these disasters are in the developing countries and particularly the ASAL communities’ whose vulnerabilities to drought risks are on an upward trend. As vulnerability increases, there has been concerted development efforts occasioned by increased investments by humanitarian and development actors, both government and non-government in ASAL regions in Kenya. This study was an assessment of the roles of community institutions in disaster risk reduction and climate change adaptation (DRR-CCA) in Marsabit County. The purpose of the study was to determine community institutional and practice gaps as well as opportunities in DRR-CCA based on national and international policy frameworks. The study was pegged on the critical roles that communities institutions had in their socioeconomic development. An action research methodology was used. Community institutions representatives, sampled purposively, consisted the research respondents drawn from five communities. Discussions and data collection was done using participatory research tools. The main finding from the study was that community institutions lacked requisite capacities to adequately deal with DRR-CCA priorities. The study hence concluded that there existed disconnect between national and international DRR-CCA plans and the actual practice among the vulnerable ASAL communities. The main recommendation was that mechanisms should be put in place, guided by appropriate policies, to strengthen coordination and practice by agency stakeholders in facilitating DRR-CCA capacity development among the vulnerable communities.