Tuesday 21 November 2017

SUSTAINABLE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT IN KENYA

A Preliminary study on sustainable economic development in Kenya was launched at Sarova Panafric Hotel, Nairobi, on Wednesday, November 15th ,  2017.  The baseline study was developed under the partnership between Konrad Adenauer Foundation (KAS) and the Institute for Research and Policy Alternatives.
The report which is the first of its nature in Kenya highlights the international debate on sustainable economic development with the special focus on sustainable economy in the Kenyan context. The new Government of Kenya (GoK) is asked to work on the realization of the country’s vision 2030, also in regard to the Sustainable Development. Is that feasible?

The study is envisaged as a tool that will stimulate debate and discussions on sustainable economy as the country faces growing problems (as for example soil erosion, deforestation, water pollution and desertification). Furthermore, the document is identifying challenges and gaps from the survey’s respondents on advancing the conversation and it makes some recommendations targeting all stakeholders.

The African Drylands Institute for Sustainability (ADIS) adis.uonbi.ac.ke  has been considered as a key stakeholder in helping to foster this debate on environmental sustainability which is an increasingly important issue in development, as citizens living below the poverty line directly rely on water and land resources surrounding their communities. With only eight percent of arable land and seventy five percent of Kenya's workforce engaged in agriculture, Kenyan farmers face growing problems as consequences of climate change. 
Since the adoption of the SDGs, the government of Kenya and its non-state actors and development partners have committed to the implementation, monitoring and evaluation of the SDGs agenda. 

  • Firstly, the country developed an elaborate implementation plan, referred to as ''Road Map'' in 2016 to guide the implementation of the SDGs goals  for all development stakeholders over the following three years. This road map expressed commitment that ''no one will be left behind'' in the economic and social prosperity of the country.
  • Secondly the government finalized its MDGs End Term Report as a way to provide a transition mechanism from MDGs to the SDGs. This was further to enable the county to carry over the lessons learnt and best practices and also build on the gains of the MDGs period. 
  • Thirdly, the country held a national official launch of the SDGs where all development actors came together to begin the process of domesticating the SDGs agenda. In addition to the launch, the country also mapped out all SDGs targets and selected indicators, and assigned to the responsible development actors.
  • Fourthly, all government ministries, departments and agencies were directed to mainstream the SDGs into policy, planning, budgeting as well as monitoring and evaluation systems and processes.
  • To help achieve the SDGs, the government also developed a Green Economy Strategy and implementation plan (GESIP) to support development efforts towards addressing key challenges such as poverty, unemployment, inequality , environmental degradation, climate change and variability, infrastructure gaps and food security among others.  

 Ultimately, Kenya can move from the 'business as usual' trajectory to the sustainable development trajectory, if it so desires. Champions must be mobilized in all sectors of the economy and the society to actively steer the sustainable development agenda and ensure sustained commitment by all stakeholders especially the national government and the 47 county governments.

Follow the conversation on twitter : # sustainKE

Thursday 14 August 2014

Call for Applications: WASCAL Master Research Program Climate Change and Education 2014/2015

http://start.org/announcements/call-for-applications-wascal-master-climate-change-education
The West African Science Service Centre on Climate Change and Adapted Land Use (www.wascal.org) appreciates the fact that the capacity to translate scientific evidence on climate change to viable policies comes with the understanding of science by experts, as well as with skills to effectively disseminate climate change science for the understanding of the general public and political decision-makers. Consequently, education is an essential element of the global response to climate change. It helps people understand and address the impact of global warming, encourages changes in their attitudes and behaviour and helps them adapt to climate change-related trends. It is imperative, therefore, that the students of the MRP get prepared to understand current scientific evidence, policy and ethical discourses on climate change.
WASCAL, therefore, aims to make climate change education a more central and visible part of the West African response to climate change in order to contribute to the understanding of the impact of global warming and to increase climate literacy. It plans to do this through the two-year “Climate Change and Education” program at The University of The Gambia.
The Master’s Research Program will enable the graduates to work as public educational experts and communication officers with a specialization in climate change. It further prepares the students for a career in Climate change, Education or Communications Sciences.
1. Learning outcomes
After the 2 year program, the graduates of the MRP “Climate Change and Education” are expected to:
• Demonstrate state-of-the-art expertise in climate change education and risk communication
• Have experience in how to plan and conduct an empirical study in the field of climate change education and communication
• Be able to develop and apply research techniques independently
• Demonstrate skills to translate knowledge of complex physical, biological and political processes for diverse audiences
• Understand and apply new academic and political concepts as they emerge
• Translate climate change knowledge into communication campaigns, educational material and policy recommendations
• Show evidence of scholarship by having presented and successfully defended a M.Sc. thesis.
2. Student Eligibility
The entry requirements to the MRP “Climate Change and Education” are as follows:
1. Applicants must be citizens of one of the following member WASCAL countries: Benin, Burkina Faso, Cote d’Ivoire, The Gambia, Ghana, Mali, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal and Togo;
2. Five O’ Level/WASSCE/NECO credit passes in Mathematics, English, and any four relevant subjects or its equivalent in Francophone countries;
3. First Degree ( B.Sc., BA, B.Ed or others) with a minimum of 2nd Class Upper Degree (Mention Assez Bien) from the University of The Gambia (UTG) or any other Institution recognized by UTG; in any discipline related to the subject.
4. Candidates must provide 3 referees, one of whom must be a Bachelor’s Degree Project Supervisor or Lecturer.
5. Students will also have to meet any additional requirements of The University of The Gambia.
3. Maximum Intake
The WASCAL Master’s program will select ten (10) applicants with the best results, one each from the WASCAL member countries. The WASCAL masters students will be provided with full scholarship by WASCAL.
An additional ten (10) applicants with excellent results may also be selected provided they have evidence of sponsorship and have the ability to complete the program within a period of 2 years.
4. Language Requirements
The language of instruction for the program is English. The following are the language requirements for admission:
1. West African School Certificate (WASCE) credit in English or its equivalent.
2. Candidates from French-speaking countries must have an intermediate level of proficiency in English. In general, a computer-based TOEFL score of 213 (or the equivalent) will satisfy requirement for their entry into the MRP.
Applicants with limited English skills are encouraged to use the time between application submission and in-person interview, to attend English training classes at their own expense.
Please note that a 3 month English Language proficiency course will be provided to the selected French-speaking students prior to enrolment in the MRP, to help meet entry requirements. Students will be required to complete this course satisfactorily in order to be enrolled in the program.
5. Scholarship and Research Support
All scholarship-holding MRP students will receive a scholarship of € 350 (three hundred and fifty euros) per month from WASCAL to cover accommodation and other expenses during their studyperiod of two years. Research support will be made available to students after the approval of their research proposal and budget by the program director, their research supervisor and WASCAL.
6. Curriculum
The duration of the Masters Research Program “Climate Change and Education” is two years, and successful candidates are awarded a MSc. Degree in Climate Change and Education from The University of the Gambia.
Practical and theoretical courses will be offered during the first three semesters of the program. These will be a combination of core courses that emphasize the focus of the program i.e. climate change and education, as well as specialized options that will further help in the achievement of the program’s objectives. The lecturers are selected from experts in specific areas of the curriculum and they come from our partner institutions, from The University of the Gambia, as well as from international partner institutes.
The courses that will be offered by the Masters program will be within the following themes.
Communication Skills; Natural Environment and Climate Ecosystems; The Basics and Applied Science of Climate Change (the physics, biosphere, atmosphere and global warming); Conservation; Climatology and Hydrology; Communication and Climate Change; Curriculum design; Earth-to-Space-based Observing Systems for Climate Change; Environmental Risk Assessment and Disaster Management; Chemistry of Climate Change; Information Systems and Climate Change; Climate Change Impact Assessment, Mitigation & Adaptation; Teaching & Advocacy of Climate Change; Computational Methods & Analysis of Climate Change; Emerging Topics & Issues of Climate Change & Education-Seminars; Curriculum Design & Development of Climate Change; Climate Change Education for Sustainable Development; Regional Climate Systems Dynamics & Modelling in Climate Change Education; Climate Change Education & Human Security; Fundamentals of Economics of Climate Change; Traditional knowledge and literature on climate change
7. Timeline
Deadline for the submission of applications: August 15th, 2014
Sending out letters of acceptance to selected students: from September 1, 2014
Only successful candidates will be contacted.
8. Application Procedure and Contact
To apply to the MRP Climate Change and Education please forward scanned copy of a fully completed application form, accompanied by scanned copes of original documents and all other information required, to both of the two following email addresses:
Note: It is important to send all required materials to both email addresses at the same time.
There may be a need for a selection interview via telephone, Skype or Messenger. The date of the interview will be communicated to eligible candidates where applicable.
Application Deadline: August 15th, 2014
Further Information
www.wascal.org or for the WASCAL brochure

Wednesday 13 August 2014

CENTER FOR SUSTAINABLE DRYLAND ECOSYSTEMS AND SOCIETIES: Develop plans to exploit potential in arid areas, ...

CENTER FOR SUSTAINABLE DRYLAND ECOSYSTEMS AND SOCIETIES: Develop plans to exploit potential in arid areas, ...: Institutions of higher learning in Kenya have been challenged to develop innovative technologies to help exploit the massive potential of d...

Develop plans to exploit potential in arid areas, study centres urged

Institutions of higher learning in Kenya have been challenged to develop innovative technologies to help exploit the massive potential of drylands in Kenya.
Speaking at a forum on sustainable development in drylands organised by the University of Nairobi’s Centre for Sustainable Dryland Ecosystems and Societies (CSDES), Principal Secretary for State Department of Science and Technology, Prof Colette Suda, said that Kenya’s drylands suffer from a lot of myths, low human capacity and knowledge gaps despite their untapped potential.
Drylands constitute over 80 per cent of Kenya’s land mass and is occupied by about 35 per cent of the over 40 million population yet they are largely ignored or overlooked in the development agenda.
Human capital
“This calls for transformative education that is accessible to dryland communities and research that generates knowledge to inform development in these areas. By building human capital, dryland communities will adopt technologies and innovations that enhance resilience, improve livelihoods and environmental sustainability,” Prof Suda said.
She was represented by the director of research management and development in the ministry of Education Science and Technology, Mr George Ombakho.
She said institutions of higher education should nurture and motivate scholars to come up with innovations that will lead to sustainable use, management and development of drylands in line with Kenya’s Vision 2030 for secure and prosperous communities in the arid areas.
“Some of the unique challenges of education in expansive drylands relates to access, quality and relevance of training. High levels of poverty and climate disasters hamper equitable access to education for dryland communities,” she said.
This call comes in the wake of persistent cases of drought and famine in Northern Kenya over the years. Low human capacity and knowledge gaps can be reversed by training the communities.
Hit by drought
Already, the weatherman has predicted a gloomy picture for most of the arid and semi-arid areas this year owing to failure of the long rains. The situation is worsened by poor short rainfall season last year.
Samburu and Turkana have been cited to be among areas that will be worst hit by the drought this year.
The University of Nairobi vice-chancellor, Prof George Magoha, said the institution had earmarked CSDES as a specialised centre contributing to sustainable dryland ecosystems and improved livelihoods through education, research, partnerships, policy dialogue and community outreach.  
“CSDES is currently collaborating with the Inter-governmental Authority on Development’s applied research in development programme as one of the centres of excellence for drylands in the Horn of Africa,” Prof Magoha said.