PKSOI Lessons Learned Report January 2019 | Page 10

police professional standards, police training programs (on accountability and ethics), and
methodologies for developing regulations on complaint management. This visit greatly
contributed to the formation of an Internal Accountability Unit in the Kenya’s National Police
Service – promoting professionalism, integrity, and accountability in the service.
7) Link police reform to the task of addressing community insecurity. Saferworld/
Usalama made a concerted effort to involve communities in local security reform efforts.
The 13 CSFs implemented a range of interventions to reduce the likelihood of at-risk groups
becoming engaged in criminal behavior. Interventions included: car wash associations to
generate income and savings for at-risk youth, training/education of bodaboda (motorcycle
taxi) drivers with the aim of preventing crimes against passengers, provision of designated
safe market spaces for women to sell produce and other items, and savings plans involving
groups of parents – to allow more children to attend school and gain jobs, vice engaging in
criminal activity. These interventions promoted citizens’ involvement in their own/community
security, helped to reduce crime, and contributed to better community-police cooperation.
Recommendations:
To optimize success of police reform programs:
1) Build constructive and collaborative partnerships – from the very outset – to ensure a
shared vision and common methodology among stakeholders.
2) Prioritize constructive engagements (through MoUs, formal arrangements, confidence-
building mechanisms, etc.) between the police service, reform program managers, and
local communities.
3) Promote citizen participation – inclusive of women, youth, local leaders, etc.
4) Ensure strong police ownership over operational policies, including at the local level.
5) Support police access to resources/technology/information systems and build
capacity to manage crime data.
6) Promote an internal culture of accountability within the police force.
7) Link police reform to the task of addressing community insecurity – through program
interventions aimed at communities’ taking some responsibility for their own state of
security … which resultantly supports police efforts/reforms.
Sources:
1. Primary reference: “Institutionalising police reforms in Kenya: lessons from 2012-
2015,” by Esther Njuguna, James Ndung’u and Kathryn Achilles, Saferworld, 9 June 2015.
2. Other references:
 “Deepening police reforms in Kenya post-National Accord: Policy implications,”
by Mikewa Ogada, Saferworld, July 2016
 “Participation and inclusion in police reforms in Kenya: Opportunities and
challenges since 2008,” by Florence Simbiri-Jaoko, Saferworld, July 2016
 “A decade of police reforms and the future of policing in Kenya,” by Charles
Otieno et al, Saferworld, June 2015
 “Community Based Strategies for Peace and Security (CBSPS),” by Lawrence
Mitchell, Peace Operations Training Institute (POTI), April 2008
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