A UNV volunteer Peace Monitor hands out a peace flyer to a resident of Baba Ndogo in Kasarani District during a peace caravan on the eve of the 2010 referendum in Kenya. (UNV)The Kasarani District Peace Committee holds a peace rally at the Mathare 4A slums on the eve of the referendum in Kenya. This was one of the hardest hit settlements in Nairobi during the post elections violence period. (UNV)

An estimated 75,000 refugees whose lives have been directly affected by war and conflict with members of their Turkana (host) community celebrated Peace on 25 September, 2010 in Kakuma, northern Kenya. It is one of the least developed communities in Kenya, and its economic situation and largely depends on livestock for their livelihood. The dry climate is not ideal for farming and agriculture and so poverty is rampant. Refugees who come to the settlement from the neighboring countries are more than often wealthier than the host community—in part because they have also received more assistance from donors. This has resulted in conflict and tension over the limited resources between the refugees and the host community. However, interaction between the host community and the refugees has improved through intermarriage, trade between the communities and support from agencies working in the refugee programme. 

In 2010, International Day of Peace highlighted increasing cooperation between the groups. The theme for this year’s celebration, “Peace through Culture and Diversity,” was chosen to promote peaceful co-existence between members of the host community and refugees from 13 different nationalities—most being from Somalia (55 percent) and Sudan (30 percent).

During 2010, four international UNV volunteers and three national UNV volunteers are based in Kakuma. Tomoko Yasunaga who has been assigned as international UNV volunteer at UNHCR coordinated and organized the event with support of several partner organizations. Audiences enjoyed performances, which included dance, music, skit, poem and art.

The occasion was an opportunity for the groups of students, peace committee members and youth from the Somali, Burundi, Oromo, Sudanese and Turkana (host) communities to express the value of peace in their own unique ways. For example, a refugee group consisting of Somali, Sudanese, Burundian, Oromo, Ethiopian and Ugandan youth appealed to the importance of peaceful coexistence through rap which they composed. Local government officials were also invited to participate and delivered peace messages during the event. After the cultural performance, football matches between the refugees and the host community were held in the refugee camp.

The 2010 Kakuma International Day of Peace celebrations was an opportunity for the refugees and the host community to get together to represent what peace meant to them through performance theatre, dance, and art. Undoubtedly, some of these messages will be imprinted in the minds of the audience for years to come.

Speaking about recovery from violent conflict at the International Peace Institute in New York in October, UNDP Administrator Ms. Helen Clark said that putting down the roots of sustainable peace is critical. As a practical example of preventive work in the area of recovery she referred to UNV Peace Monitors supporting the development of local peace committees in Kenya. “When the violence broke out, the areas which had those committees were able to get on top of it reasonably quickly and that’s encouraged us to carry on that work now and support at the local level those who build those bridges”, she said.