The launching of Project titled “RECAP” fully stated as ‘Resilient Border: Advancing Climate Adaptation, Peace, Livelihoods, and Preparedness in Cross-border Communities of Ethiopia and Kenya was conducted in Yaballo Town on April 27, 2026. It is a cross border Project that involves the CDG and VSO-Ethiopia on Ethiopian side and HODI and VSO-Kenya on the Kenyan side that are implementation partners. The funding partner is International Partnerships Austria. The implementing partners and relevant government officials gathered for the launching at Nigat Hotel in Yaballo.
Honorable Ambassador Eshetu Dassie, Advisor to the Ministry of Peace and Advisor to CDG Board of Governance, made an opening speech in which he stressed on the importance of such cross-border projects. He said the Project immensely contributes to peace, stability social cohesion and peaceful coexistence of communities of the two countries that lived side by side for generations sharing common culture and ethnic background. He added that such cross-border projects contribute to wise use of resources which would help avert the effects of climate change in pastoral and semi-pastoral cross-border areas of the two countries. The Ambassador appreciated the funding partner, International Partnerships Austria, for giving attention to the cross border issues management and encouraged them to continue soliciting fund to address challenges of unreached cross-border communities.
Prior to the speech by the Ambassador, Dr. Temesgen Tilahun, Country Representative and Project Implementation Lead, VSO Ethiopia, welcomed participants and gave briefs about the RECAP project.
The Project is planned for implementation in Moyale-Moyale and Miyo-Sololo Districts of Ethiopia and Counties of Kenya located across border of the two countries.
Participants of the launching event included Oromia Regional and local level stakeholders. Relevant government sector offices like Bureau of Agriculture, Buusaa Gonofaa (DRR), Zonal Administration Office, Agriculture, Buusaa Gonofaa (DRR), and Peace and Administration were among participants.
In the later part of the program VSO Ethiopia and CDG representatives provided briefing about the project one after the other. In the briefings made by project implementers from the Ethiopian side focused on Project description, Project Objectives, expected results, major activities categorized in clusters of four, Climate Resilience, Climate Adaptation, Peace Building and Social Cohesion, crises preparedness and response and sustainability strategies.
After the briefings, participants of the event gave their own reflections about the project. During the reflection, majority agreed that the project need to be inclusive and participatory. It was stressed that all sector offices of the government need to follow up the implementation; monitor, actively participate and support the project implementation.