The National Cohesion and Integration Commission (NCIC) has opened an office in Marsabit County as its efforts to restore peace in the region have become even more critical.
According to NCIC commissioner Abduraziz Farah, the government remains dedicated to finding a long-term solution to the ethnic problems that have made peace in Marsabit hard.
“The commission will be able to respond to issues as they arose here in Marsabit as opposed to doing from Nairobi,” he said and thanked the International Organization for Peacebuilding (Interpeace) for sponsoring the initiative.
Farah stated that security and peace concerns necessitated the need to transfer the commission’s services to the county level of Marsabit during a two-day peace-building stakeholders forum held at a hotel in Marsabit town.
Marsabit County Commissioner Paul Rotich noted that the forum was organized during the peak of a security operation and a twilight to dawn curfew, which is now in its second month, to supplement the security restoration effort.
Rotich informed attendees from all villages in the county, the leader of operation Rejesha Amani Marsabit commissioner of police Bernard Mbatha, and Interpeace senior regional representative for East and Central Africa Theo Hollander that the government’s goal was to bring peace to the region.
“Restoration of security must go hand in hand with peace building to make sure the gains that will be made are not lost,” he said.
Rotich cautioned that the region was awash in illegal firearms and that the plan to disarm everyone would be carried out until everyone was disarmed.
He stated that the administration was concerned about the poor pace of growth in the country, despite massive resources, and that attempts were being made to reverse the trend.
“The government is investing heavily in this county in terms of security and finances to tap the existing potential in tourism, mining, trade, and agriculture in a bid to transform the lives of the residents,” he pointed out and disclosed that the establishment of a government chemist was the latest move towards that endeavor,” said Rotich.
In the following nine months, NCIC, in conjunction with Interpeace, will lead a continuous peace-building initiative in Marsabit aimed at reconstructing and rebuilding the county through the revival of trust and acceptance across communities.
The most recent meeting was the culmination of a series of inter-communal peace sessions previously organised by the government, NCIC, and other parties.