TURKANA – Education challenges, limited economic opportunities and the need to strengthen pathways to self-reliance for young people and families remain among the issues requiring greater attention in Kakuma and Kalobeyei.

The issues were highlighted on Tuesday, August 11, 2026, during a visit by officials from Jesuit Refugee Service (JRS) Eastern and Southern Africa and JRS Kenya to schools, youth groups and community initiatives in Kakuma. The visit focused on understanding the experiences of communities and the challenges affecting their daily lives.

JRS Eastern and Southern Africa Regional Director Andre Atsu and JRS Kenya Country Director Geoffrey Shikuku visited Vision Secondary School and Blue State Secondary School, where they engaged with students and teachers on learning conditions and some of the challenges that need to be addressed to ensure children continue to access education.

The officials also visited community and youth groups, including GRE Boys’ and Girls’ Clubs, MILES Teen Mothers Group, caregivers involved in vegetable gardening and savings and lending groups.

The activities reflect efforts by community members to find ways of coping with economic and social challenges, with education, skills development and small-scale economic activities providing avenues for young people and families to strengthen their livelihoods.

For some families, activities such as vegetable farming and savings groups have become ways of generating income and meeting everyday needs. However, access to skills, capital and markets remains important for such initiatives to become sustainable.

Speaking during the visit, JRS Eastern and Southern Africa Regional Director Andre Atsu said it was important to assess the changes taking place within communities and use the lessons learned to improve the way services are delivered.

“We need to strengthen impact measurement, documentation and learning from our experiences in order to better understand the changes we are helping to achieve,” Atsu said.

He also encouraged parents and caregivers involved in income-generating activities to explore ways of developing their initiatives and working with other stakeholders to expand economic opportunities.

For communities in Kakuma and Kalobeyei, access to education and livelihood opportunities remains important in building resilience, particularly among young people, parents and families facing income-related challenges.

The visit on August 11 highlighted the need for continued community involvement in identifying challenges and developing solutions, with education, skills development and economic opportunities remaining key areas that can help refugees and host communities respond to the challenges affecting their lives.

Seven months ago, during a visit to Kakuma Refugee Settlement in northern Kenya, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees Barham Salih praised Kenya as a model for refugee protection.

Speaking with refugees, students and entrepreneurs, Salih called for greater international solidarity to find durable solutions for refugees living in prolonged displacement.

“It is simply not right that we have people stuck in camps for years. Their dignity and human rights require the international community to help them develop self-reliance.”

Salih also highlighted the importance of education, recalling his own experience as a refugee and the opportunity he received to study at a refugee school.

TURKANA – Turkana County employees are still waiting for their July 2026 salaries, with the county government blaming delays in processing in Nairobi while the Controller of Budget says counties must take responsibility for submitting complete budgets on time.

In a notice dated August 10, the Turkana County Government informed staff that payment of July salaries had been delayed due to “slow processing by relevant offices in Nairobi.” The administration said it was working to fast-track the process and assured employees that salaries would be paid immediately once the process was completed.

The county urged staff to remain patient and apologised for the inconvenience caused.

The explanation comes as Controller of Budget Margaret Nyakang’o places Turkana among counties whose 2026/27 budgets had not been cleared as of August 10.

Nyakang’o said Turkana was among four counties still awaiting clearance, alongside Nyamira, Isiolo and Tharaka Nithi. She said counties were required to submit their budgets by June 30 but some submitted them late, with others only doing so in August.

According to the Controller, some submissions also had critical omissions, including plans for settling pending bills, a Fiscal Strategy Paper and evidence of public participation.

The CoB’s position means the salary delay cannot be viewed solely as a problem of processing in Nairobi. Counties have to meet budgetary and legal requirements before funds can be accessed and spent through the Integrated Financial Management Information System.

Nyakang’o has previously taken counties to task over failure to requisition funds for salaries even after receiving allocations from the National Treasury.

In a report covering June 2025, Turkana was among 16 counties that had not requested funds for staff salaries despite having received their allocations. The Controller said, “16 did not request their June 2025 salaries,” with records showing Turkana, Narok and Bungoma had last drawn salaries in April.

The latest delay has also revived criticism from Turkana political leaders.

Turkana North MP Paul Nabuin has previously criticised the county government over delayed staff salaries. In a statement on August 8, Nabuin was reported as having slammed the Turkana County Government for delayed staff salaries.

The criticism comes against a backdrop of repeated salary challenges affecting county workers.

In March, Governor Jeremiah Lomorukai acknowledged outstanding salary and allowance arrears affecting health workers and announced the release of Sh58 million towards settling part of the backlog.

“We are going to release 58 million very soon,” Lomorukai said, while acknowledging that another Sh35 million dating back several years remained outstanding and would have to be provided for in a subsequent budget.

The governor said clearing the arrears was necessary to restore staff morale and stabilise service delivery in the health sector.

The current July delay, however, affects the wider county workforce and comes at a time when employees are already facing mounting household financial obligations.

For county workers, the difference between the two explanations is significant.

The county says the immediate obstacle is processing by relevant offices in Nairobi, while the Controller of Budget’s position points to the need for counties to ensure their budgets are properly prepared, submitted and cleared.

The CoB has also noted that most counties have balances in their accounts following the release of July funds by the National Treasury. The challenge, she says, is that the money cannot be spent until the respective budgets are approved and the required requisitions cleared.

This means the presence of money in a county account does not necessarily translate into an immediate ability to pay salaries.

For Turkana employees, however, the immediate concern is straightforward: when will July salaries be paid?

The county has not given a specific payment date, but maintains that it is working to expedite the process and will release the salaries as soon as the outstanding procedures are completed.

The latest episode is likely to intensify scrutiny of Turkana’s financial management, particularly given that salary delays have occurred before.

For thousands of county workers, the hope is that the current impasse will be resolved quickly and that future salary payments will not be caught between county budget processes and national-level approvals.

University and technical college students in Turkana County have taken to the streets of Lodwar in a campaign against alcohol and drug abuse, warning that substance use is increasingly threatening the health, education and future of young people.

The students, operating under the umbrella of The Comrades Voice, held a peace walk through Lodwar as part of efforts to raise awareness on the dangers of alcohol and substance abuse.

The campaign comes amid growing concern from health authorities over the impact of substance use in Turkana, with alcohol identified as the leading substance of abuse in the county.

During a similar awareness campaign in Lodwar recently, NACADA coordinator for Turkana and West Pokot, Scola Komen said alcohol remained the most abused substance in Turkana.

“Alcohol remains the most abused substance in Turkana County,” Komen said.

She said people affected by substance abuse could seek treatment at Lodwar County Referral Hospital, with referrals made to rehabilitation facilities outside the county where necessary.

Komen also disclosed that, at the time, Turkana did not have a NACADA-accredited rehabilitation facility.

The latest county government performance data points to the scale of the response being mounted, but also highlights gaps in treatment infrastructure.

According to Turkana’s 2024/25 Annual Programme Performance Report, the county conducted six alcohol and substance-abuse counselling sessions, six community-based psychosocial trainings and 10 public barazas. It also formed 32 Alcoholics Anonymous groups and carried out six inspections of alcoholic-drink outlets.

However, the county recorded zero rehabilitation centres constructed during the financial year, against a target of one.

Students warn against peer pressure

Speaking during the Lodwar campaign, The Comrades Voice student leader Alfayo Etabo said young people were increasingly being exposed to drugs and alcohol, with the problem contributing to idleness and other social problems.

Etaabu challenged young people to reject peer pressure and instead use their energy in education, employment, entrepreneurship and community development.

“Young people should come out strongly and engage in development instead of involving themselves in behaviours that can destroy their future,” Etaabu said.

He also warned young people against allowing relationships and peer groups to influence their decisions on alcohol and drugs.

He said young people should not feel pressured to drink or use drugs simply to gain acceptance from friends or partners.

The students used the walk to educate residents on the effects of substances including bhang, warning that drug use can affect mental health, physical wellbeing and a person’s ability to pursue their goals.

Health authorities raise alarm

The student campaign follows growing concern within the county health department.

In October 2025, Turkana health officials held a meeting in Lodwar to discuss the effects of alcohol and drug abuse, describing the problem as one that was affecting several areas of public health, including reproductive, maternal and adolescent health, nutrition, HIV and AIDS, tuberculosis and mental health.

The county’s Mental Health Lead, Ibrahim Echuman, also warned that the problem extended beyond alcohol.

“Other drugs like miraa, muguka, bhang, and glue are taking a serious toll on our young people,” Echuman said.

The county health officials identified peer influence, economic hardship, family and social pressures, trauma, depression, easy access to alcohol and weak enforcement as some of the factors contributing to substance abuse in Turkana.

In February 2026, the county launched its first County Mental Health Council, with health officials saying increasing substance misuse was contributing to psychosocial stress in communities already facing drought, food insecurity and displacement. The council is expected to coordinate mental-health and psychosocial-support interventions across the county.

NACADA’s latest nationwide survey on the status of drugs and substance use was conducted in 2022 and published in 2023. The survey covers people aged 15–65 and provides estimates at national and regional levels. It does not provide a current 2024–2026 prevalence rate for individual counties such as Turkana.

Nationally, NACADA found that 18 per cent of Kenyans aged 15–65 had used at least one drug or substance in the previous month. Alcohol was the most commonly used substance, with a past-month prevalence of 11.8 per cent.

The survey found that men had higher levels of substance use than women, while people aged 25–35 were the most affected age group.

For lifetime use, alcohol stood at 19.4 percent nationally, compared with 3.4 per cent for cannabis. Lifetime use of cocaine and heroin was each below one per cent nationally.

NACADA also found that 4.6 per cent of Kenyans aged 15–65 had used miraa in their lifetime, with the rate substantially higher among men than women.

These national figures provide context for the problem but should not be interpreted as Turkana-specific prevalence figures.

A treatment gap remains

The shortage of rehabilitation infrastructure remains one of the biggest challenges facing Turkana.

While the county has expanded counselling, psychosocial support, community awareness and enforcement activities, its 2024/25 performance report recorded no rehabilitation centre constructed during the financial year.

The gap comes as the county government seeks to strengthen mental-health services and integrate substance-abuse interventions into the wider health system.

For the students behind the Lodwar peace walk, however, prevention remains the first line of defence.

They are calling for greater awareness in schools and communities and for young people to be supported to pursue education, skills development, employment and entrepreneurship.

Their message is that the fight against drugs cannot be won through arrests alone. It will require prevention, counselling, treatment, rehabilitation and, above all, meaningful opportunities for Turkana’s young population.