“When we talk about ‘borderlands’ it is a sort of locational or geographical term. But behind that hides a great deal of history, a great deal of perceived injustice, and a great deal of missed opportunities,” Achim Steiner, UNDP Administrator. 

On February 28, the Africa Borderlands Centre (ABC) hosted an interactive session on Resilience, Innovation and Livelihood Impact: Voices from Borderland Communities with Achim Steiner, UNDP Administrator, and community members in borderlands regions who have been co-creators on key activities implemented by the ABC. This side event was part of the Administrator’s mission to Kenya between February 26^th – March 2^nd, 2022.

This was a unique occasion to directly engage with borderland community innovators, advocates, community leaders, and UNDP Accelerator Lab staff, all working with the ABC to bring the development agenda of borderlands into focus to accelerate Africa’s attainment SDGs 2030.

Connecting virtually from Burkina Faso, Sierra Leone, Mali, Kenya, Zambia, and Zimbabwe, the borderland community advocates and innovators, echoed a common sentiment of ambition, hope, and commitment to collaborate with UNDP to deliver much needed socio-economic stimulation expanding on homegrown initiatives within their communities.

Mandisa Mashologu, UNDP Kenya Deputy Resident Representative, moderated the event, which was also attended by Ahunna Eziakonwa, UNDP Africa Assistant Secretary-General and Regional Director, Walid Badawi, UNDP Country Representative,  Zeynu Ummer, ABC Team Leader, and Senior Technical Advisor, Kehinde Bolaji, ABC Programme Advisor/Manager, Samba Thiam, UNDP Policy Advisor, Faten Bokri, Special Assistant to the Administrator and, last but not least, Fatoumatta Mboge-Ba, Special Assistant to the Regional Director.

The event highlighted the partnership and co-design model adopted by the ABC to tap into UNDP’s value proposition as the leading development integrator in Africa by utilizing UNDP country offices programming, UNDP Accelerator Labs, and the vast array of continental and global development partners to access borderland communities to curate unique development approaches and generate quick impact.

“This is a two-way relationship, a two-way investment on your part (borderland communities) and on our part (UNDP) ….so we can bring resources or catalytic investments to parts of the country that weren’t there,” concluded Achim Steiner.

The ABC side event during the Administrator’s mission was the perfect prelude to the *Soko Discussion titled Driving towards inclusivity through investing in borderlands: What opportunities are we seeing so far, held during the Resident Representatives Cluster meeting held March 1^st -3^rd 2022. In the Soko event, the ABC attracted over ten UNDP Resident Representatives where key borderland issues were raised such as the need to close the research and data gaps, address structural gaps such as limited public services, private investments, and transboundary insecurity, and the vital need to develop a regional lens to address challenges while taking advantage of opportunities. ABC’s catalytic role in programming was recognized as a valuable resource for UNDP country offices. The Resident Representatives present urged the ABC to work within the political economies of African states and utilize a targeted partnership approach in line with regional entities such as the African Union and IGAD. 

*The word Soko means a Market in Swahili and in this context refers to a space to present and exchange ideas for learning.