The ongoing public engagement to inform the final content of the proposed 10-year County Spatial Plan from 2023 to 2033, concluded in Turkana South, with residents calling for installations to define borders with neighboring counties and improve security.
The County Executive Committee Member for Lands, Physical Planning, Housing, and Urban Areas Management, Peter Akono led the four-day exercise at Kainuk, Kaptir, Katilu, and Kalapata.
The county administration team and members of the Physical Planning Directorate accompanied the CECM.
Regina Lomukon, a resident of Kainuk, recounted the unending border-related conflicts with neighboring communities and said that the situation was derailing the development of the area.
Lomukon called for a Plan that clearly demarcates the border, identifies water points for human and animal use, and provides access infrastructure for responding to bandit attacks.
The residents in the visited areas welcomed the sub-division of the sub-county into Aroo and Lokichar and called for the upgrading of the proposed headquarters to urban centers befitting their acquired status.
In addition to border and security concerns, the residents called for the inclusion of a fully-fledged level-five hospital, a housing project for the growing population, and rapid urbanization.
They also called for the completion of processes leading to the issuance of title deeds, as the entire land in the area was still registered as community land.
Davies Munialo (Director of Physical Planning), Stephen Baraza( County Surveyor), Austin Eregae (Lands Officer), and John Lokoli (Turkana South Sub-county Administrator) spoke during the public engagement.
Similar engagements have already been conducted in Turkana Central, Turkana West, Turkana North, and Loima, where the joint team of consultants, the County and National Government officials who undertook the exercise received views from the members of the public.
