Projects
STRATEGIC PILLARS
Our Strategic Pillars
For 2024 – 2028, HCO’s strategic interventions are organized into 6 strategic pillars carefully selected in line with our strategic orientation to help the organization achieve its goal. These include as follows:
Identity, Documentation and Belonging
HCO promotes legal identity and documentation, including birth registration, access to citizenship rights, and the right to belong. Strategies include community sensitization, legal empowerment, movement building, community-led change-making, strategic partnerships, petitions, and community self-identification.
The organization has supported over 50,000 children to access birth registration and documentation through mobile birth registration exercises conducted in collaboration with civil registration services. In addition, 50,000 children have accessed birth registration through paralegal assistance i.e. sensitization on the benefits of birth registration laws and policies, application procedures and requirements, and support in document application and follow-up with civil registration services.
In collaboration with the Coalition on Nationality, Citizenship and Statelessness Empowerment (CONCISE), and the Citizenship Paralegal Partner Network, HCO is working to shift citizenship and documentation issues from individual to community, and national issue. We support communities facing citizenship challenges in developing advocacy plans to hold the government accountable for fair treatment in citizenship rights, pushing for reform on birth registration legislation, and the citizenship law, and advocating for comprehensive reform to the documentation system before digitalization.
In May 2022, HCO and other civil society organizations teamed up to form the East Africa Nationality Network (EANN) to strengthen regional collaboration among civil society and NGO actors working to eradicate statelessness in East Africa. In July 2022, HCO joined the Global Alliance Taskforce to support the establishment of the Global Alliance to End Statelessness (GAtES). From October 2024 HCO is a member of the first advisory committee of the GAtES. HCO is also a member of the Advisory Group of the Global Movement Against Statelessness (GMAS).
HCO was involved in advocacy for the Makonde including the Makonde Walk which was the final push that led to the registration of the community by the government of Kenya in 2016. With the support of UNHCR and working closely with the government, HCO played a significant role in the confirmation of approximately 7,000 individuals from the Pemba community as Kenyan citizens.
We continue to support the remaining stateless groups in Kenya such as the Rundi and Rwanda to finalize their register which is a model of Community Generated Data (CGD) that supports evidence-based advocacy with the Government and guides the registration committee as a first point of reference during registration.
Access to Justice
The Access to Justice thematic area is aimed at ensuring improved access to basic rights, legal remedies, and alternative justice to disadvantaged individuals and communities using different approaches including legal empowerment, provision of legal aid, Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR), and capacity building for self-representation, and public interest litigation. This thematic area is currently anchored under the Programme for Legal Empowerment and Aid Delivery (PLEAD) II supported by the European Union through UNDP Amkeni wa Kenya. Our Community Justice Centre (CJC) in Kisauni has been operational since 2023. The CJC has proved helpful in fostering a more just and equitable community by providing accessible and inclusive legal resources and services to the poor and marginalised in Kisauni.
Women Empowerment and Child Protection
The Women Empowerment and Child Protection Pillar seeks to enhance the social and economic status of poor women through empowerment programs, protection mechanisms for children, and advocacy for their rights. We use People’s Institutions (PI) namely Self-Help Groups (SHGs), Community Level Associations (CLAs), and later Federation as vehicles to drive community empowerment and structural change. Our approach targets the poorest of the poor women and takes 7 years to create the desired change. 1400 women are currently going through economic, social, and political empowerment.
We engage children in children’s groups to provide opportunities for them to learn more about their rights and how to claim them while providing input on issues affecting them and how they could be resolved. Our programming strives to promote the holistic development of the child. We protect children from exploitation and abuse, enhance their mental well-being and equip them with life skills, citizenship, legal identity, and rights awareness. The Learning through Play approach seeks to keep children in school, improve performance, and increase transition rates from primary to secondary school. Over 25000 children have been supported since 2014.
Peace and Security
The Peace and Security Pillar seeks to enhance social cohesion, community safety and resilience for sustainable and inclusive development. Because of perceived historical injustices including unresolved land issues, the coastal region has in the past experienced land-related conflicts, politically instigated violence, and inter-communal violence. The region has also been characterised by intergenerational conflicts, conflicts between law enforcement and youth, proliferation of youth gangs, and other forms of crime. Significant progress has been made in addressing these issues largely through multistakeholder efforts, but challenges remain. HCO will continue working with the youth to promote accountable and responsive delivery of safety and security services, improve the relationship between law enforcement and the youth, enhance intercommunal and interreligious tolerance, and delegitimize violence as a means of addressing grievances. Further, HCO will continue mentoring peace ambassadors while empowering communities and working closely with state actors to prevent/ reduce social conflict and violence in our communities.
Governance and Civic Engagement
This strategic pillar seeks to strengthen democratic governance and foster active civic engagement by promoting transparent, accountable, and inclusive decision-making processes, thereby empowering citizens to participate meaningfully in the governance of their counties. Civic awareness and vigilance are important in ensuring prudent utilization of devolved funds, equitable development, and efficient delivery of essential services to the people. HCO will continue conducting civic education campaigns and skills-building aimed at enhancing the participation of youth in democratic processes, budget monitoring and promoting good governance.
Land and Environmental Justice
This strategic pillar promotes equitable access to and use of land and environmental resources and accountable land governance. Despite progressive land reforms since the promulgation of the 2010 constitution, equitable access to land remains elusive for the poor in Kenya. The Coast region has particularly been characterised by land issues and land-related conflicts for decades.
Challenges in the implementation of the Community Land Act have hindered the protection of community land rights as encroachment of communal lands remains a significant problem. In addition, poor and marginalised communities bear the brunt of hazardous waste, resource extraction, and other land uses from which they hardly benefit. HCO works with affected communities, community groups and other key stakeholders to promote accountable land tenure and land governance as well as advocate for the communities’ right to a healthy environment and equity in the distribution of environmental benefits and burdens.
Recent Projects
Most Recent Projects
The citizenship rights project is a project that seeks to ensure equal and non discriminative access to the right to a nationality and entitlements of citizens as per the 2010 constitution and relevant law. It advocates for the full realization of citizenship rights and promotes equitable access to vital legal identity documents such as birth corticates, Ids, and Passports.
The Access to Justice Project is a strategic initiative aimed at empowering poor and marginalized communities in Kisauni Sub- County with the knowledge and tools necessary to claim and defend their rights. Funded by the European Union under the Programme for Legal Empowerment and Aid Delivery (PLEAD) II, the project advances inclusive, people-centered justice solutions.
The Self-Help Group Approach (SHGA) is a powerful tool for community development, empowering individuals and fostering collective growth. Unlike conventional women’s groups, SHGA drives transformation across economic, social, and political dimensions, delivered through structured People's Institutions
Our children's rights program aims to advance the rights of children in Mombasa, Kilifi, and
Kwale Counties. We employ various approaches to promote the holistic development of
children and protect their rights. These approaches include Learning through Play, Thriving
through Play, facilitating access to birth registration and documentation, and the Children
Group (CG) Approach, which encourages child leadership and life skills mentoring. The
program equips children with knowledge about their rights and how to advocate for them, as
well as developing soft skills and providing tools they need to become responsible members
of society and future leaders. It targets children aged 5 to 18 years and is currently
supported by the Global Fund for Children and Kindernothilfe.
Earlier Projects
Advancing Justice and Community Empowerment
Jamii Thabiti (JT) project aimed at reducing levels of criminal violence, inter-communal violence, and violence against women and girls (VAWG) in Kwale County targeting neighbourhoods/communities served by the Msambweni, Diani, Kwale and Kinango Police stations. The overall goal of the project was to ensure improved safety and security institutions that provide more effective, accountable and responsive services to a public that is actively engaged in improving safety and security. The peace-building component of JT involved engaging and building the capacity of youth, women, religious leaders and the local peace and security structures to enhance effective participation, coordination and partnerships in peacebuilding and conflict management for a more resilient community.
The Youth Against Violence and Extremism project aimed to strengthen the capacity of young people to play an active role in preventing and countering violence and extremism in their communities and learning institutions in Kwale County. Specifically, the project improved the effectiveness of grassroots youth leaders and youth-led organizations working to promote safety and security, enhanced trust between law enforcement and the younger generation, and led to effective collaboration and partnerships between youth and national and county government in addressing localised drivers and root causes of violence and extremism.
The Land Advocacy Project was implemented in Mombasa, Kwale, and Kilifi Counties to strengthen the capacity of coastal communities, particularly youth, women, and other marginalised groups to understand their land rights under the new land laws in Kenya. The goal of the project was to advocate for the implementation of the National Land Policy and to equip the community and relevant state actors with skills and education to monitor land ownership issues. The project was supported by Akiba Uhaki foundation.
The Urban Refugee Livelihood project was a US Embassy-supported project that sought to promote livelihoods and self-reliance of urban refugees in Mombasa County by supporting refugee-owned businesses to recover from socioeconomic shocks of COVID-19 through business grants, removal of legal barriers, and online marketing support. Small grants to 100 beneficiaries helped in procuring business equipment and/ or restocking. The project also supported refugees and vulnerable host communities to deal with psychological distress caused by COVID-19. Approaches that promote some level of integration with local communities were encouraged.
The Youth for Constitutionalism project was implemented in two constituencies in Mombasa County, namely Mvita and Likoni and three constituencies in Kwale, namely Msambweni, Matuga, and Kinango with the support of Uraia. The goal of the project was to strengthen the capacity of Coastal communities to understand the relationship between democracy and electoral processes. Specifically, the project strengthened the capacity of youth, women, and persons living with disability to actively participate in elections by educating them on democracy and electoral processes, including voter registration, nomination procedures, and voting.
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