Kenya, 04 February 2016 - UN-Habitat has joined in the implementation of Kalobeyei Integrated Socio-Economic Development Program (KISEDP), a Turkana-based initiative that seeks to facilitate collaboration and coordination between the Kenyan Government, UN agencies, development actors, NGOs, private sector and civil society to build sustainable services and economic opportunities in Kalobeyei, a new settlement in Kenya that is expected to accommodate more than 60,000 refugees and host communities. The programme focuses on both short-term (humanitarian) and long-term (sustainable development) interventions and will be implemented through four thematic areas: sustainable integrated service delivery and skills development; spatial planning and infrastructure development; agriculture and livestock development and private sector and entrepreneurship.

UN-Habitat, having gained unique and universally-acknowledged expertise in human settlements development for the past 40 years, will lead the spatial planning and infrastructure development thematic area in close collaboration with the World Bank, Turkana County Government, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), national government agencies, refugees and host communities as well as humanitarian implementing partners such as Peace Winds Japan. UN-Habitat’s intervention will be participatory and is expected to lead to the establishment of a support function for the county government of Turkana, sustainable livelihoods development for refugee and host communities and formulation of detailed re-settlement plan that will include an integrated spatial and investment plan.

The Turkana County Government has expressed confidence in the outcomes of the KISEDP specifically through UN-Habitat’s interventions on spatial planning. In a meeting held in Lodwar, Turkana County on 26 January 2016, the County government urged UN-Habitat to utilize global best practice and in-house expertise on planned urbanization and integrated sustainable settlement planning to promote social cohesion and reduce potential refugee and host community conflicts in Kalobeyei and the neighbouring settlements. The implementation by UN-Habitat is supported by the Government of Japan through the Regional Office for Africa in collaboration with the Urban Planning and Design Branch, Programme Division and the Urban Governance Unit.