Kenya Cash Consortium – Four Years On: Locally-led response case study

The Arid and Semi-Arid (ASAL) region in Northern Kenya is ravaged annually by cyclic shocks including drought, flash floods and most recent the desert locus invasion affecting the social economic status of vulnerable communities. To address the immediate humanitarian needs, the Kenya Cash Consortium (KCC) – composed of the ASAL Humanitarian Network (AHN), ACTED, Concern Worldwide, Oxfam, and IMPACT Initiatives – implements multi-purpose cash assistance-based projects to address the basic needs and support the recovery of affected households.

With funding from the Directorate General for European Civil Protection and Humanitarian aid (DG-ECHO), ensuring a locally led humanitarian response has been at the core of KCC’s working model. This is observed over the past four years as consortium partners have increased the investment in the role of national non-government organizations (NGOs) in the coordination, project development, and decision-making mechanisms. While achievements have been made, the consortium has also identified hindering factors that needs to be recognized and put on the agenda for relevant actors to discuss and find the best ways forward in achieving the Grand Bargain commitments.

This paper aims to highlight milestones made regarding locally led humanitarian response under the umbrella of the Kenya Cash Consortium projects over the past four years. It also endeavors to present lessons learnt and some of the best practices to inform the humanitarian financing system. Lessons show that localization is achievable as the consortium is centered on local leadership to reach communities affected by disasters.