Mandera Governor Ali Roba has said the speed at which a government responds to conflict determines how fast it is solved.
“The more the delay, the more people get sucked into a conflict. A minor problem in a community can easily escalate into a regional conflict," Roba said.
The governor spoke in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, on Thursday during a regional conference for a sustainable peace for communities bordering Moyale.
"Once it gets to such a level of complexity, the drivers change. External players are involved, and they become the financiers. The external players will control what the villagers will do," he said.
Roba said by the time a response is initiated, the scope and the impact of the conflict have spread.
The governor said the state should always remain neutral when dealing with sensitive matters such as conflicts between communities, otherwise, it could lead to tension and clashes.
"Pastoralists respect authority and the government as long as they believe there is fairness. That is the only time that a government can have meaningful intervention. Otherwise, once the government is seen as biased, then efforts to find a lasting solution will be futile because of discontent," Roba said.
He said there is a need for increased investment in the socio-economic development of cross-border communities in basic services such as access to education, water, infrastructure and food security.
Mandera has for a long time borne the brunt of inter-clan clashes. Roba shared his experience and said the cause of inter-community conflict can either be real or perceived.
“I inherited a region that was gravely affected by inter-clan conflict between two local clans for over a period of two years before the advent of devolution. That continued for another two years under devolution. In my simple view, I see the genesis of conflicts is the same across the entire region,” Roba said.
The conference was attended by top officials from both Kenya and Ethiopia.
Edited by Pamela Wanambisi
