1. Kenya Muslim Youth Alliance -

2. About Kenya Muslim Youth Alliance (KMYA)
The Kenya Muslim Youth Alliance (KMYA) is an independent national youth network founded in
November 2003 to empower young Muslims through constructive engagement and encourage participa-
tion in nurturing democratic, healthy, and peaceful and a just society for all. KMYA accomplishes its
goals through capacity building, networking, dialogue, research, health related programs, advocacy and
information dissemination.
The leadership of KMYA appreciates the fact that young Muslims require specific programs that are
designed for their special needs to facilitate acquisition of knowledge; skills and attitudes to enable
them cope with the demands of a fast changing world without compromising their Islamic values.
Currently, the Alliance boasts of broad membership comprising of 153 youth led community based
organizations (CBOs), subscriber base of over 50,000 youth spread all over the country, relatively posi-
tive profiles and an entrenched institutional goodwill. The organization is served by a professional and
competent team of nine Board members with proven abilities and passion for youth development and
well-being.
Youth after attending a KMYA organised workshop.
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3. Vision, Mission Objectives and Values
Vision
The Muslim youth potential are nurtured and positively harnessed.
Mission
To ensure that the Muslim youth have a voice, access to resources, promote knowledge creation and dis-
semination, and nurture community’s future leadership.
Objectives
i. To provide a functional consortium that is charged with the responsibilities of promoting
the interests of the Muslim youth in Kenya.
ii. To focus on integrated program approach towards addressing challenges facing the youthful
Muslim community. Such challenges include grass root leadership gaps, illiteracy, poverty
alleviation, participatory governance, human rights observance and HIV/AIDS among
other emerging challenges.
iii. To strengthen the capacities of the Muslim youth organizations (e.g. societies, CBOs,
FBOs etc) in their efforts to realize their specific objectives and aspirations
iv. To pool human and financial resources together to achieve the members’ objectives.
Values
• Democratic governance and management.
• Holistic and integrated approaches in programming interventions.
• Gender equity and full enjoyment of human rights by all including the minority and
disadvantaged.
• Transparency and accountability in resource utilization.
• Entrenchment of stability and social sustainability.
Garissa youth: kmya promotes the interests of the Muslim youth in Kenya.
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4. Secretariat
KMYA has two fully-fledged modern secretariats that coordinates and implements its programs in
Kenya. The National Secretariat is based in Nairobi and coordinates activities in the North East,
Western and Central regions of the Republic of Kenya while the Mombasa regional office manages
programs and activities in the entire Coastal region.
KMYA Regional Secretariate along Moi Avenue-Mombasa.
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5. Core Programs
Since inception the Alliance has designed and implemented a number of projects that include the
following:
1: Muslims Youth Leadership Development Program
2: Issue Based Advocacy and Awareness Creation
3: Good and Participatory Governance, Democratic Development and Human Security
4: Networking, Partnership and Coalition Building
5: Media
Muslim youth outside the KMYA Mombasa office.
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6. 1: Muslims Youth Leadership Development Program
The basic principle and intention of the Muslim Youth Leadership Program (MYLDP) is to encourage
young Muslims to dream, discover, design, and create their destiny by challenging existing systems that
are not corresponding to the demands of the modern society.
KMYA experience of working with a variety of organizations and groups has proven that by focusing
on young peoples skills, strengths and abilities; society will significantly increase propensity to perform
better and maximize individual positive potential.
Under the MYLDP thematic area, the Alliance has trained 1200 youthful Imams and leaders of youth
initiatives and those drawn from institutions of higher learning. In line with its objective of nurturing
community’s leadership, KMYA has developed capacities of youth leaders drawn from youth led
initiatives at the grassroots across the country.
Kenya Muslim Youth Alliance hosted the Muslim youth parliament.
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7. 2: Issue Based Advocacy and Awareness Creation
Involvement of youth in leadership requires concerted efforts, awareness creation and articulation of
youth specific issues through well-designed and tailored advocacy campaigns and related strategies.
Development of IEC materials and messaging plays a significant role.
Under Issue Based Advocacy and Awareness Creation thematic focus, KMYA has worked successfully
on the following areas:
1.Monitoring and Advocacy of the Implementation of Agenda 4:
Truth Justice and Reconciliation Commission (TJRC). Through this project, the
organization successfully managed to develop the capacity of the local Muslim communities
in Nairobi, Nakuru, Eldoret, Kisumu, Nyeri, Garissa, Isiolo and Mombasa.
Communities’ leadership was also organized to be able to prepare and present memoranda
to TJRC on historical injustices and to seek reparations.
2. Carried out national level advocacy campaigns through publication of issue based articles
and opinions in both the New Dawn and The Star publications with the aim of guiding
the national discourses and raising the youth voice.
3. Carried out campaigns through Bulk SMS System advocating for peace and peaceful
coexistence during the referendum.
KMYA meets the Interim Independent Electoral Commission, Chairman, Issack Hassan.
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8. 3: Good and Participatory Governance, Democracy and Human Security
Good and Participatory Governance, Democratic Development and Human Security constitutes
thematic planks of the Alliance’s programmatic engagements. Since human security is tri level i.e.
individual, institutional and structural, it is therefore necessary to base peace building efforts in the lives
of the marginalized people- ‘frustrated youth”. KMYA has established that the unemployed youth are
forming an ‘army’ of idle people who could easily be manipulated to swing into directed actions and
cause political instability and social chaos in the region and the country as a whole.
Peace and human security is core to human development and societal progress. Taking into account the
fact that Muslims inhabited areas are characterized by incessant conflicts and instability in the neighbor-
ing countries, participation of the Muslim youth in peace building and conflict management initiatives
is critical.
Under this thematic area, the Alliance has implemented the following programs:
1. Peace and Security for Development (PSD)
PSD program is considered to be one of the most successful initiatives KMYA has
undertaken. The objective of the program is to promote peaceful coexistence by building
linkages between youth led initiatives, community leadership, institution of the village
elders and the provincial administration. The program successfully bridged the gap between
the Muslim youth and the provincial administration, human rights organizations and
clerics. This program managed to develop capacities of 240 young men
and women through Learning Circles (LC).
2. National Civic Education Program II (NCEP II)
KMYA participated in the National Civic Education Program II with the main objective
of imparting knowledge on the content of the new constitution so as to make informed
decisions when voting during the referendum. The program trained and deployed 30
paralegals across the country. During its implementation, the program applied the Mombasa Katiba Road show.
following strategies to reach out to the communities; youth parliament, Village Barazas,
soccer tournament and road shows.
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9. 4: Networking, Partnership and Coalition building
Leadership involves networking around issues, partnerships and coalition building with
like-minded individuals and institutions. Given myriad challenges facing Kenyan Muslim
youth in particular, networking, partnership and coalition building with likeminded
individuals constitutes an inescapable step in contemporary leadership. Under this thematic
area, KMYA implemented the following programs:
a) National Youth Forum (NYF)
KMYA is the current host of the National Youth Forum (NYF). Through its leadership,
NYF has grown to be the leading youth movement in Kenya. NYF membership currently
stands at 20, 000 with a subscriber base of 1.5 million across the country.
b) Partnership with Interim Independent Electoral Commission (IIEC)-Get Out the Vote
Project
Get Out The Vote program was implemented jointly with IIEC South Rift, South West
and North Coast. It was aimed at sensitizing the community particularly the youth on
the need to register as voters to vote during the referendum and subsequent
elections. In Coast region, the project directly mobilized 142, 300 voters in 8
constituencies thanks to the partnership and cooperation of IIEC through house-to-house
and media campaigns, village barazas and public rallies.
c) Partnership with the Committee of Experts (CoE)
KMYA distributed 102, 000 copies of the Harmonized Draft Constitution (HDC) in
partnership with the Committee of Experts and through its own network and that of the
National Youth Forum (NYF) grassroots network.
d) Live Televised Town Hall Meetings
As the host organization of the National Youth Forum, KMYA hosted live Televised
Town Hall Meetings during pre-referendum period to mobilize young people to vote and Participants in group work during the National Youth Forum Conference in 2010.
vote peacefully.
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10. 5: Media Strengthening and Support Program-The New Dawn
Publication
The media plays an important role in shaping the opinions, ideals and practices of the society, espe-
cially the youth. The advent and penetration of Information Technologies (IT), presents both oppor-
tunities and challenges for the youth. IT presents great business opportunities for the youth. However,
IT also predispose the youth to social ills such as pornography. Cognizant of these opportunities and
challenges, KMYA uses it’s in-house media-the New Dawn to positively influence the youth.
KMYA has published and distributed the New Dawn in Kenya since 2007.The New Dawn provides
readers with general news as well as news and stories about the Muslim community, the Islamic religion,
and the importance of tolerance in a pluralistic society. Many articles clearly focused on democratic
institutions, good governance and accountability.
New Dawn
The New Dawn publication have recorded the following successes since its inception:
• Carried out 8 regional launches targeting the Muslim leadership, business people and other
stakeholders with the aim of increasing its market portfolio and to attract advertisements for
sustainability.
• Promote feedback from readers to understand issues affecting the Muslim youth through
Bulk SMS System.
• Reduced publication’s publishing time frame from monthly to bi-monthly publication.
Broadcast Radio Programs
KMYA have been running a number of radio programs with the aim of imparting civic knowledge and
promoting dialogue around issues of concern to young people and the society at large. Radio Rahma in
Mombasa airs Tuzungumze 1 hour live radio program on Sunday evening. A New Dawn newspaper distributer.
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11. 6: KMYA Partners
• British High Commission
• USAID Kenya
• Royal Danish Embassy
• Canadian High Commission
• Embassy of the United States of America
• Cordaid Foundation
• URAIA
• National Endowment for Democracy (NED)
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