The Turkana County Government has signed a new Memorandum of Understanding with the International Rescue Committee, (IRC), to complement each other’s efforts in transforming county through interventions in key sectors.
Deputy Governor Dr. John Erus signed the agreement on behalf of the County alongside the Head of IRC Turkana Field Office, Joshua Rutto.
According to the MoU, the two entities will cooperate in health, nutrition, WASH, economic recovery and development, protection, advocacy, systems strengthening and research, disaster management and emergency response.
Dr. Erus noted that IRC started its interventions in Turkana in the early 90s, long before the onset of devolution, and has done excellent work in strengthening health care systems and enhancing the livelihoods of refugees in Kakuma.
“With this agreement, the County and IRC will join hands in strengthening capacity for inclusive delivery of health services in Turkana, including animal and human disease surveillance and intervention along the Kenya-Uganda-Ethiopia-South Sudan border areas,” the DG said.
The DG added that the MoU opens opportunities for joint resource mobilization and the utilization of the IRC ISO-certified laboratory in Kakuma.
On his part, Joshua Rutto, the IRC Turkana County Area Coordinator, said the MoU is part of IRC’s wider strategy to align all its interventions with the development blueprints of Turkana County, including the current and upcoming County Integrated Development Plan (CIDP), KISEDP and the Shirika plan.
Rutto added that IRC will continue its membership in various sector working groups to strengthen service delivery within the framework of coordination permitted by the county through the Directorate of Partnerships and Resource Mobilization.
“We are happy that the joint work and consultation between IRC and the county has birthed this MoU. Through this agreement we can now strengthen service delivery to all the vulnerable groups targeted by IRC interventions in both the host and refugee populations,” Rutto said.
The new MoU comes at a time when the county is preparing for the 2nd edition of the annual NGOs and Development Partners Week to be held in the coming months.
The MoU signing was witnessed by Mike Aupe (Deputy Director Partnerships and Resource Mobilization), Sylvester Ebei Eoko, (Health, UHC and Partnerships), and Alex Marangach (Social Protection).
Naphtali Kamau represented the office of the County Attorney during the exercise.
