By James Wakahiu
More than 950 local and international guests converged in Thika town yesterday as the long-awaited conference on peace and security kicked off amid heightened political activities as the August 8 General Election looms in Kenya.
Opening the forum held at the Mwai Kibaki Convention Centre at Mount Kenya University in Thika town, Agriculture Cabinet Secretary Peter Munya said the conference is being held at an opportune moment when the country is awaiting anxiously for the August 8 General election which is less than 100 days away. “There is heightened tensions across the country especially after party nominations and announcements of running mates for presidential candidates,” he said.
The conference theme is: “The Role of Universities, Public and Private Sectors in Peace Building for Socio-economic Development“. The format of the conference includes sessions on keynote speakers, interactive panel discussion sessions and parallel sessions on academic presentations.
In a speech read on his behalf by Fisheries and Blue Economy PS, Dr Francis Owino, Munya regretted that over the decades, the role of peace making had been left to policy makers and other stakeholders.
“Yet, there is also the role ole of individuals and institutions in promoting peace. The Constitution of Kenya affirms the pride of Kenyans to live in peace and harmony in a sovereign nation. It also addresses long-standing issues of economic and social imbalance,” he said.
Threats to security include poverty, youth joblessness, militia groups, proliferation of trade in small arms. There is also competition for resources which results in conflicts and violence.
The CS said whilst Kenya’s early warning system have been put in place and are doing fine, response coordination remains poor. As a result, insecurity cases are often reported several hours after the disasters have happened.
He regretted that voting patterns portray regionalism and ethnic trends. Leadership questions on the role of leaders on conflicts – territorial wars Conflicts between national and county governments such as supremacy wars between the senate and Parliament. These wars send wrong messages to the citizenry; they are confused as to way to go.
He asked Kenyan individual attributes to read and understand the Constitution and related regulations.
“The values in the Constitution bind all state organs, institutions, all public officers and all citizens,” he said.
The CS said there are several layers of peace, starting with inner peace with yourself, the peace that transcends all understanding. He regretted the impatience of youth who have been hijacked by technology and expect a world that works instantly. “Youth are committing suicide because their phone messages have not been responded to or have been blocked by a friend or partner,” he said.
From inner peace, intra-personal peace comes when people have inner peace and respect others. “Kenyans should not be bothered by how their neighbours vote: it’s their right,” he said.
Declaring the international conference open, Munya called on all Kenyans, State officers and government departments to work effortlessly to ensure the country remains peaceful during and after the elections.
The forum yesterday focused on academia and peace, while today it will focus on the role of foreign organisations and NGOs in supporting peace initiatives. Tomorrow’s main agenda is the position of the Public and Private Sectors in safeguarding peace. More than 500 delegates attended in person while another 450 participated online.
Welcoming the delegates to the meeting MKU Vice-Chancellor Prof. Deogratius Jaganyi said the conference comes as a climax to a number of earlier-on conducted pre-conference activities hosted by MKU within the last three months. These included a Pre-Conference Breakfast meeting hosted at a Nairobi hotel and a peace walk at six MKU campuses – Thika, Meru, Nairobi, Mombasa, Nakuru and Eldoret. A series of wwebinars on peace was also part of the preparations.
Quoting from the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) No. 16, on “Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions”, Prof Jaganyi said the highlights of SDG No. 16 indicates that, “Conflict, insecurity, weak institutions and limited access to justice remain a great threat to Sustainable Development”.
The 16th SDG champions for a society that is free of violence of all kinds, that protects its people from abuse, and that promotes the rule of law, ensuring equal access to justice, and shared resources. MKU, in line with her three core mandates of teaching, research and community engagement has organized this conference and numerous related activities,” he said.
Marking the International Day of Living Together in Peace on Monday this week, Amb. Tecla Loroupe said; “Peace is like the oxygen we breathe” for we all need oxygen all the time and there would be no life without oxygen. “According to Loroupe, there also would be no life without peace. This is therefore a good justification for this conference and many other activities that we as Kenyans and the world at large are doing to advance peace at all levels,” he said.
Prof. Mark Charlton, from the United Nations Academic Impact SDG 16 Hub on Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions, at the De Montfort University, UK, is one of the main speakers in the Thika conference.
Dr Vincent Gaitho, the chairman, conference organizing committee and MKU’s Pro-Chancellor called for a moment of silence in honour of the late President Mwai Kibaki. He said during the first conference held five years ago at the Safari Park Hotel, Nairobi, important resolutions on peaceful coexistence were agreed upon. This culminated to the launch of the African Consortium for Peace (AC4P) whose full institutionalization is underway. “The hosting of this Second Peace Conference therefore intends to build upon those gains,” he said.
“The organisers have therefore provided a three-day platform for a healthy discourse among various stakeholders on peace, security and social enterprise in Kenya, more so in the run up to the 2022 General elections, but also for the whole world at large,” he said.
“Borrowing a leaf from two key global players, namely the Ford Foundation and the International Labour Organization, diversity, equity, and inclusion must be a key point of focus within the organizational missions,” Dr Gaitho said.
The Pro-Chancellor acknowledged the invaluable and diverse contribution that various partners and sponsors, including United Nations organisations and government of Kenya departments and the private sector, for supporting the conference.
