CIVIL SOCIETY ORGANIZATIONS: A PANACEA FOR NATIONAL COHESION AND INTEGRATION IN KENYA

Abstract

Civil society has gained prominence in relation to the dynamics of political and economic structures in the last four decades in Kenya. CSOs have been agents of development in Kenya as they play a significant role politically, socially and economically. CSOs play key roles in peace building, national cohesion and integration. However, they are faced with a myriad of challenges. The thrust of this paper is to establish the relationship between civil society organizations and national integration in Kenya. Specific objectives include establishing key challenges and opportunities for CSOs in Kenya. The study employed a descriptive research design. Various documents written on the above subject were reviewed to establish key thematic areas. The key findings of the paper highlight many contributions of civil society in Kenya including community policing; advocacy, monitoring, raising awareness among policy-makers and public amongst other roles. CSOs face a myriad of challenges including the acrimonious relationship between government and CSOs which is based on suspicion and competition, the absence of homogeneity in their roles and inadequate political will. Opportunities for CSOs in Kenya is to act on the basis of universally-recognized rights and freedoms in order to articulate public concerns that are inadequately addressed by the government. Secondly, through asserting people’s sovereignty and community control, being closer to local reality than governmental institutions and helping to bridge a government-community gap by promoting social cohesion. The paper concludes that CSOs have a plethora of expertise and resources vital to responding to the multifaceted nature of problems in Kenya and require a collaborative approach from Government. This paper recommends active involvement of the public, using CSOs as a potential platform for debate. CSOs need to set norms and standards for guiding government actions and should negotiate participation in regional governance issues through already existing regional policy frameworks. Keywords: Civil Society, Challenges, Government, National Integration, Opportunities