events / 22 October 2025

Narratives, Ethnicity and Polarisation: A Kenyan Case Study

Event

23/10/2025

4:00 pm - 5:00 pm

The Institute for Integrated Transitions (IFIT) is pleased to invite you to Narratives, Ethnicity and Polarisation: A Kenyan Case Study, an online event hosted by our Narrative Peacebuilding Hub.

Narratives about ethnicity have shaped Kenya’s political and social landscape since the colonial period, often incentivising violence and destabilising democracy.

Drawing on experiences from national institutions designed to address past harms, ongoing polarisation and barriers to cohesion, IFIT experts and partners Dr. Sellah King’oro, Mr. Josiah Musili, Rev. Dr. Samuel Kobia, and Dr. Tecla Wanjala will reflect on the deep roots and consequences of the simplified narratives entrenching ethnic divisions in the country.

With our recent publication on the topic as a starting point, the panellists will discuss ways of complexifying and transforming such narratives to foster depolarisation and democratic resilience, while highlighting lessons for other contexts.

Date: Thursday, October 23, 2025, 16:00–17:00 CET/ 17:00–18:00 EAT

Registration: Please click here to register

Format: Roundtable (30 minutes), followed by Q&A (30 minutes)

Moderator: Sellah King’oro, Advocate of the High Court of Kenya; member of IFIT’s Inclusive Narratives Practice Group

IFIT Expert Panellists:

• Josiah Musili, Director of the Kenyan Directorate of National Cohesion and Values
• Samuel Kobia, Chairman of the Kenyan National Cohesion and Integration Commission; member of IFIT’s International Advisory Council
• Tecla Wanjala, Director of the Social Healing and Reconciliation Programme of the Green String Network; member of IFIT’s Law and Peace Practice Group

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