Understanding and managing pastoral conflict in Kenya

This literature review explores the range of writings available concerning pastoral conflict in northern Kenya. It argues that that conflict has grown rapidly in Africa in the least three decades, and pastoral areas are among the most vulnerable. For this reason, there is an urgent need for a stocktaking of contemporary analysis of conflict. This paper maps the state of knowledge, to identifies important gaps in understanding, and suggests promising avenues for future practical work.It specifically explores the literature referring to pastoral conflict in north Kenya, concerning:the prominent actors involved in the conflict inthe importance of the national political situationthe effect of international influencesthe outcomes of pastoral conflictthe construction of a typology of violent pastoral conflictmajor changes in pastoral conflict over timethe importance of the advent of automatic weaponsdifferent analytical perspectives on conflict over resource tenure and usethe breakdown of the ability of customary institutions to manage conflictthe potential role in pastoral conflict for agenciesThe literature synthesises typical recommendations made in order to establish more efficient conflict management mechanisms. These include:give support to participatory development planning to prepare conflict management components of wider development plans and policies, and to assess the likely impact of development activities on conflictintegrate conflict management and reduction goals and activities into the national poverty eradication plan as it is implemented, especially: incorporate conflict management considerations into pilot field demonstration projects and into selection of geographic and sector targets for the plan; provide training on conflict management within wider poverty training for senior civil servantsdevelop strategies and methods for more successful development in conflict-prone arid districts, including improved natural resource tenure, food security, marketing and creditsupport preparation of case studies of the links between conflict and povertyexplore regional support to conflict managementdevelop a conflict impact analysis procedure for all new projects