Expanding Rangeland to Achieve Growth & Transformation

The Omo Delta Project (ODP) is funded by the EU Emergency Trust Fund for Stability and Addressing the Root Causes of Irregular Migration and Displaced Persons in Africa with € 12,631,578 for the period between January 2018 and April 2021. It addresses root causes of irregular migration and displaced persons and is a cross-border project covering Kenya and Ethiopia (southwest Ethiopia/northwest Kenya, specifically Marsabit and Turkana counties). The project is implemented by a VSF Germany-led consortium of six partners, including Mercy Corps-Kenya, VITA, EPaRDA, CIFA, and TUPADO. The overall objective of the project is to promote economic and private sector development and greater resilience among youth, women and displaced people and targets 18,575 beneficiary HHs.

In 2020, the project experienced a combination of hazards such as COVID-19, cholera, the desert locust invasion, insecurity, floods and drought that affected the implementation process and increased vulnerabilities of targeted beneficiaries to the hazards and shocks. In response, the ODP Crisis Modifier budget facility was activated. The funding could, hence, be  channeled where it was most needed in face of the multitude of challenges. VSF Germany and partners then implemented an innovative technology driven integrated emergency response to reduce the risk of exposure, mitigate against the severity of the effects and cushion communities against effects of multi-hazards on their livelihoods in the project areas. The objective of the integrated emergency response was to  strengthen coping capacity and resilience against negative effects of multi-phased crisis. Intervention measures entailed facilitating access to emergency food access, COVID-19 infection prevention and control measures through the distribution of hygiene kits and personal protective equipment (PEP), improved financial security and to safeguard small scale business from risk of collapse from COVID-19 impact through cash injection.

The intervention modality was designed as a unconditional cash transfer using e-voucher, e-cash and e-trade digital systems to facilitate food access and conditional cash transfer to beneficiaries and payments to vendors supplying various food stuffs and other project supplies. This was done in partnership with Myfugo, a  technology firm based in Kenya. Target groups were HHs hosting malnourished children <5 years, the elderly, chronically ill persons, women headed HHs, pregnant and breast-feeding mothers and the youth. The beneficiaries were selected from the ongoing Omo Delta Project beneficiary groups e.g IGA/Business groups, Beach  Management Units (BMUs) and fish cooperatives, vendors, small stock traders, casual workers, unemployed, pastoralist, Village Savings and Loaning Association  members, Natural Resources  management Committee members, Environmental Management Committee members, Community Disease Reporters (CDRs), livestock cross-breeders and agro-pastoralists groups. The electronic system enabled easy generation and issuance of digital coupons, e-vouchers or direct cash transfers to beneficiaries. The system allowed the disbursement of food baskets to targeted vulnerable groups by pre-loading beneficiary data (either business groups or  individual members) who would receive a specially generated identity code and message of where they can pick their food baskets at the assigned time. The system had enhanced security features that prevented anyone from claiming food basket if she/he has not received a message (with code) on their phones. Only identified beneficiaries whose details were logged into the system prior to disbursement could make claims, thus reducing cases of fraud. The system was done on pilot basis with the support of a system developer and worked so successfully and transparently to the excitement of the donor that has endorsed it for future projects that they would fund under VSF Germany patent.

A more secure Shop

Arupe Dabalen, aged 32, has a family of seven and takes care of five other family members. She is a member of the Naretoi Self Help Group. Arupe’s husband does not work but they have children and other relatives to take care of. In 2018, she sold three goats to raise KES 6,000 and started a small business with one bag of 25kg of sugar, one bag of rice and one bag of beans. She operates from a traditional structure. She made a profit of KES 2,000 after selling all the rice, sugar and beans. After receiving a training in the context of VSF Germany’s project, Arupe took a loan which she was afraid of taking initially and expanded her business that was on the verge of collapse because of little profit and strain from household needs. Arupe thus states: