How does Localization work on the ground? Podcast with Evans Onyiego and video of his work in Northern Kenya

December 7, 2018

     By Duncan Green     

On the margins of the localization discussion I covered yesterday, I grabbed a few minutes to interview Evans Onyiego. Evans runs a local Caritas office in Maralal, in Northern Kenya, where the Church is playing a big role in trying to rebuild trust between ethnic groups and communities whose traditional rivalries have been turbo-charged by the arrival of automatic weapons.

He’s particularly interesting both on the way his work highlights the role of faith organizations in such areas, and because he has a sharp, well-informed and practical bottom-up view of all the somewhat abstract conversations about reforming the humanitarian sector. Plus some great practical examples of building peace through boarding schools and shared market places, among others.

This is a multi-media experience: the podcast with Evans (18 minutes) is at the top.

But you can also watch the 11m video about Caritas’ work in Maralal, which runs through the ‘entry points’ and ‘connectors’ they use to build trust and relationships. That includes working with women and children, inter-ethnic boarding schools and building trust by sharing market places.

And check out the slightly scary Mr Jackson Lodungikiok, politely described as ‘controversial’ – he later confessed to Evans that he had tried to kill him, but concluded that Evans must have some kind of divine protection, because he could never find him!

 

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