Page 17 - MANDERA-COUNTY- THE 2019 MAGAZINE

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Frontier Counties Development Council (FCDC)

PROMISING FUTURE FOR ECONOMIC BLOC

PHOTO| Courtesy Standard Group

Governor Roba (centre) admires bulls during the Frontier Counties Development (FCDC) Conference at Kishaunet Showground in Pokot
as governors of other FCDC member counties look on.
he Frontier Counties Develop- perity in the FCDC region.
ment Council (FCDC) is a re- So far, the council has attracted signfi-
Tgional economic bloc composed cant development support from devel-
of the county governments of Lamu, opment partners and governments, in-
Tana River, Garissa, Wajir, Mandera, cluding the World Bank’s NEDI project
Marsabit, Isiolo, Turkana, Samburu that is set to transform the infrastruc-
and West Pokot. ture landscape of frontier counties.

The council was formed in March The Sector Forum for Agriculture and THE ROLE OF FCDC
2016, when governors from seven Livestock (SFAL), through the Live-
member counties signed a memo- stock Sector Strengthening (LSS) • Addressing short-term regional
randum of understanding (MoU). The project supported by the Swiss gov- problems and opportunities in the
composition has since grown from ernment, seeks to enhance livestock region
seven member counties to 10 as of production by creating a favourable • Building a foundation for medium
FCDC CEO September 2018 to become the larg- environment for the delivery of live- and long-term sustainable, broad-
Mohammed Guleid based development
est economic bloc in Kenya. The for- stock services.
mation of county regional economic • Strengthening resilience of fron-
blocs is the result of the appreciation This support includes measures to tier counties’ dwellers in the face
that regional development is a core modernize the sector, policy and ad- of new opportunities and traditional
pillar of economic growth. vocacy work, and knowledge man- problems
agement and information. The project • Taking advantage of regional
Counties are vital drivers of the coun- is contributing to enhanced pastoralist synergies and economies of scale
try’s economy and therefore county community resilience that will result in • Genuinely involving the citizens
integration can provide the critical le- improved livestock-based livelihoods in developing and implement solu-
verage necessary to realize economic and sustainable socio-economic de- tions that affect their livelihoods
growth. velopment.
www.fcdc.or.ke
The role of FCDC is to promote co- The main emphasis is on improving
operation, coordination and informa- key factors such as herd manage-
tion sharing between counties to en- ment, animal health, fodder produc-
hance socio-economic development tion and market development and
and promoting peaceful co-existence strengthening institutions involved in
among its members. FCDC wants to the livestock sector to deliver relevant
enhance the benefits of the devolution services more effectively and by en-
process in their member counties by hancing inter-county coordination,
serving as a catalyst and trigger for peace and cohesion.
sustainable development and pros-