Workshops

Communicating the project results to the local community through workshops is an effective way to both educate and inform on key issues.

Start-up Stakeholder Workshop

VIRED International organised an initial one day workshop at the start of the project in September 2013 in Kisumu City to introduce the project to various local stakeholders.  Those present included representatives of key government bodies, local NGOs, the well owners’ association, and residents’ associations.  During the workshop, the team received positive and enthusiastic feedback about the work to-date. Key issues were examined surrounding current and future groundwater use and its quality, as well as issues of particular concern to the community in order to determine which problems should be tackled initially and which should form the focus of future investigations in a follow-up project.  Other relevant initiatives happening across the city were also discussed.

The importance of communicating the project results to the local community was emphasized, as described in the Kisumu Startup Workshop Report Sept 2013  and that it should be implemented in a simple and easily understandable way in order to inform and educate the residents effectively. It was agreed that as water is of key importance to the livelihood of the people of Kisumu addressing the impact of water pollution will have a significant effect on the lives of the local community.  The need for research on practical solutions to the problem of water contamination was also highlighted.