The Smart Village Initiative

Power to Practice: Vihiga Youth Climate Accountability Initiative
Vihiga Youth Climate Accountability Collective | Smart Village Initiative
POWER TO PRACTICE

Youth-led climate
accountability in Vihiga County

We equip rural youth with tools to monitor adaptation budgets, document community realities, and hold decision‑makers accountable for equitable climate action.

Discover our work Get involved

The accountability gap

County adaptation plans exist on paper, but often fail to reach erosion‑prone communities. Rural youth and smallholder farmers are excluded from decisions.

Promise vs practice

Budgets are allocated, yet farmers see little change. Resources stay in documents, not fields.

Exclusion

Youth and women are left out of planning forums where their futures are decided.

Inaccessible data

Budget documents are technical, hidden — communities cannot track what is promised.

No advocacy channel

Grassroots evidence exists but doesn't reach policymakers. We change that.

Power to Practice

A structured initiative to turn community voices into accountability.

  • 30 youth climate monitors trained in budget literacy & advocacy
  • Participatory budget tracking across 5 wards
  • Climate Promise Scorecard & public Accountability Brief
  • County Accountability Forum with officials & assembly committees
  • Formal memorandum demanding corrective action
5
wards
30
youth monitors
240+
farmers engaged

Our approach

We combine training, participatory research, and public advocacy to institutionalise youth-led accountability.

Budget literacy

Train youth to decode county adaptation budgets and track allocations.

Participatory mapping

Community documentation of climate impacts and implementation gaps.

Scorecard & brief

Simplify findings into accessible public accountability tools.

Public forum

Present evidence directly to county officials, demand formal responses.

Follow-up

Monitor implementation of commitments, ensure lasting change.

Meet the collective

Rural youth smallholder farmers leading climate accountability in Vihiga.

Joan Ameda

Founding Coordinator

James Odhiambo

Youth Organizer

Mama Christine

Elder Advisor

Faith Achieng'

Documentation Lead

Partners & allies

5 smallholder farmer groups Ward youth networks Village elders County Dept. of Environment County Assembly committees