What We Do

Five Development Objectives. One integrated approach.

Resilience is built across sectors, not within them. Our five Development Objectives address distinct domains, but they are designed to reinforce one another.

An integrated programme.

DCI's work is organised under five Development Objectives that respond to the most pressing challenges facing communities in Kenya's ASAL counties. While each objective addresses a distinct domain, our programming is integrated, recognising that resilience is built across sectors, not within them.

DO 01

Climate Resilience & Adaptation

Climate change is intensifying the frequency and severity of droughts and floods across our operational counties. Erratic and declining rainfall, rising temperatures, rangeland degradation, water scarcity, and resource-based conflicts are deepening household vulnerability and reversing development gains.

Our interventions

Climate Information Services & Early Warning Systems

Community-based early warning systems blending indigenous knowledge with scientific data, fed by weather stations and translated through Participatory Scenario Planning.
Ecosystem-Based Adaptation & Natural Resource Management

Restoring degraded rangelands through reseeding, enclosures, soil and water conservation, supported by community-led grazing plans and bylaws.
Disaster Risk Reduction & Emergency Preparedness

Community risk assessments, contingency planning, anticipatory action, pre-positioned supplies, trained first responders.
Climate Finance, Governance & Institutional Strengthening

County-level advocacy for climate change legislation, dedicated climate finance, ward climate change planning committees.
Clean Energy & Low-Carbon Development

Solar pumping for water, mini-grids and household solar, efficient cookstoves and clean cooking alternatives.

DO 02

Food Security & Livelihoods

Food security and livelihoods are at the core of the development challenge across our eight operational counties. These predominantly pastoral and agro-pastoral communities, where livestock contributes up to 80% of household incomes in arid areas, face chronic and acute food insecurity. Six of our eight counties consistently rank among Kenya's most food-insecure.

Our interventions

Social Protection & Safety Nets

Implementation and emergency scale-up of the Hunger Safety Net Programme, plus livelihood graduation pathways.
Livestock Production, Health & Marketing

Strengthening Livestock Marketing Associations, value chains for meat, milk, hides, and camel milk, community animal health workers, vaccination, disease surveillance, fodder production, index-based insurance.
Crop Production, Irrigation & Agricultural Livelihoods

Climate-smart cropping, micro-irrigation, flood-recession farming, breed improvement, market infrastructure.
Livelihood Diversification & Economic Empowerment

Ultra-poor graduation programmes for women, micro-enterprises, savings groups, mentorship.
Nutrition-Specific & Nutrition-Sensitive Programming

Acute malnutrition management, optimal breastfeeding and complementary feeding, micronutrient supplementation.

DO 03

Governance & Social Cohesion

Our operating counties, all members of the Frontier Counties Development Council (FCDC), share a common legacy of political exclusion, under-investment in public services, and recurring cycles of conflict. Resource-based conflicts, cross-border insecurity, the proliferation of small arms, inter-clan competition, and marginalisation-driven grievances all shape the governance landscape, even as devolution opens new opportunities for citizen participation and service delivery.

Our interventions

Peacebuilding & Conflict Prevention

Community-based peace committees, monthly inter-community dialogues, women in peace processes, youth engagement, community policing.
Preventing & Countering Violent Extremism

Community awareness, interfaith dialogue, economic empowerment for at-risk youth, county PCVE strategy support, rehabilitation programming.
Civic Engagement & Public Participation

Empowering citizens to participate in governance, social accountability tools (community scorecards, expenditure tracking, social audits).
Human Rights & Access to Justice

Mobile courts, legal aid clinics, paralegal networks, community-based human rights monitoring, civic space protection.
Social Cohesion & Cultural Heritage

Joint community projects, cultural exchanges, inter-community sports, youth-led peace clubs, citizen journalism.

DO 04

Water, Sanitation & Hygiene

Our operational counties constitute some of the most water-stressed regions in Kenya. Water scarcity risk scores in Marsabit, Mandera, Wajir, and Garissa exceed 9 out of 10 on international indices. All eight counties feature among Kenya's 15 with the highest rates of open defecation.

Our interventions

Water Supply Infrastructure & Access

Drilling, equipping, and solarising boreholes, sand dams, water pans, rock catchments, sub-surface dams, piped networks and metered distribution.
Sanitation Services & Open Defecation Elimination

Community-led total sanitation, sanitation marketing, local artisan networks, post-ODF follow-up.
Hygiene Promotion & Behaviour Change

Safe water handling, menstrual hygiene management, food hygiene, community health volunteers, school health clubs.
Water Resource Management & Governance

Strengthening Water Resource Users Associations and community water management committees on governance, financial management, tariff setting.
WASH in Community Centres

Boreholes, markets, gathering points, gender-sensitive and disability-accessible facilities.

DO 05

Health

Health outcomes across our operational counties remain among the poorest in Kenya. An estimated 20 to 30% of the ASAL population has minimal to no access to essential health services. Drug stock-out rates have reached as high as 67%, immunisation coverage in some pastoralist sub-counties falls below 50%, and maternal mortality ratios are more than double the national average.

Our interventions

Community Health Services

Recruitment, training, and equipping of Community Health Promoters, community-based disease surveillance, health education through dialogue days and radio.
Reproductive & Adolescent Health

Family planning access, demand creation, adolescent-friendly services tackling teenage pregnancy, early marriage, FGM-related complications.
Communicable Disease Prevention & Control

Cholera, malaria, HIV, tuberculosis, Rift Valley Fever, neglected tropical diseases, One Health approach for zoonotic diseases.
Mental Health & Psychosocial Support

Integration into primary health care via WHO mhGAP protocols, psychological first aid, GBV survivor counselling.
Sexual & Gender-Based Violence Response & Prevention

FGM prevention through community dialogue and alternative rites of passage, child marriage prevention, men and boys as allies.

Cross-Cutting Themes

Themes that run through every programme.

Beyond the five Development Objectives, our work is shaped by four cross-cutting themes that run through every programme.

Emergency Response & Humanitarian Coordination

Rapid assessment, multi-purpose cash, emergency shelter, county humanitarian coordination, last-mile delivery, community feedback mechanisms.

Refugee & Host Community Programming

Multi-sectoral service delivery in Dadaab and Kakuma/Kalobeyei aligned with Kenya's Shirika Plan, livelihoods, social cohesion, durable solutions.

Women's Economic Empowerment

Village savings and loan associations, business skills, start-up grants, ultra-poor graduation, value chain support, digital financial inclusion.

Access, Enrolment & Retention (Education)

Low-cost boarding, mobile schools, accelerated education programmes, school feeding, bursaries, girls-specific interventions, climate-resilient school infrastructure.

SDG Alignment

Contributing to 11 of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals.

Our work directly contributes to 11 of the 17 SDGs. The numbered tiles below show each goal in its official UN colour.

SDG 1: No Poverty
SDG 2: Zero Hunger
SDG 3: Good Health & Well-being
SDG 5: Gender Equality
SDG 6: Clean Water & Sanitation
SDG 7: Affordable & Clean Energy
SDG 8: Decent Work & Economic Growth
SDG 10: Reduced Inequalities
SDG 11: Sustainable Cities & Communities
SDG 13: Climate Action
SDG 15: Life on Land
SDG 16: Peace, Justice & Strong Institutions

Want to know where we work or who we partner with?

Where We Work Our Partners