Youth are 31 percent of Kenya’s population according to the National Population and Housing Census (2019) and yet, they are one of the most politically excluded and economically disadvantaged population groups. In spite of public participation being a principle of governance and a national value, citizens and in particular youth rarely attend public participation forums, as affirmed during CEEC’s community interventions in Nairobi’s informal settlements. Unfortunately, an uninformed citizenry cannot hold its leaders to account, speak out against human rights violations, demand public service delivery or claim the fulfillment of their rights from the duty bearers. This ultimately means democracy cannot thrive. More importantly, in addition to inclusive civil and political participation being a democratic right, it is a crucial pillar for peaceful and stable democracies that respond to the specific needs of the young people.
CEEC with support from GIZ-CPS is putting youth at the centre of their governance in a project dubbed “Promoting Dialogue Spaces: Youth Civic Engagement with State Authorities in Kibra Constituency”. The project which is a follow up of “Dialogue Spaces: Youth Civic Engagement with State Authorities in Nairobi’s Informal Settlements” is building the capacity of youth, MCAs and key community leaders from 4 wards in Kibra Constituency namely Lindi, Laini Saba, Sarang’ombe and Makina on civic engagement. Project activities are Baseline Survey on youth participation in governance, capacity building of youth and duty bearers, community dialogues, media engagement, development of information education and communication (IEC) materials and participation in the county budget-making process. The project is enhancing youth capacity to define and drive their agenda in a healthy and nonviolent way and providing a platform for advocacy on youth inclusive resource allocation and accountability.