Challenges facing the implementation of community policing in Kenya: a case study of Kibera, Nairobi.

Abstract

The study sought to identify implementation-related constraints facing the community policing initiative at the Kibera community policing pilot site, Nairobi. The rationale was that the challenges facing the residents and the police in community policing have not been appropriately documented in the existing empirical studies in Kenya. The present study therefore sought to generate baseline data that can be used to evaluate the success of community policing programme in the area with the help of four objectives, namely: To find out the perceptions of Kibera residents and the police officers based in Kibera on the community policing implementation progress; To establish the main implementation approaches of community policing programme in Kibera and how they have assisted in reducing incidences of crime; To identify all the challenges facing implementation of community policing in Kibera; and, to identify the measures put in place by the police in Kibera to manage confidentiality of information and intelligence accruing from residents. The Kibera was purposively selected as the research site because it was one of the centres from which the government sought to pilot the community policing programme. Cluster sampling and simple random sampling techniques were used to draw a representative sample consisting of 130 residents and 35 police officers. Data was collected using questionnaires and interview guides. Descriptive statistics namely frequency counts and percentages were generated to capture the distribution of responses on the key issues addressed in the study's questionnaire. The study identified the key constraints to implementation of community policing as follows: poor public image of the police force; poor customer service procedures within the police force, which discourage the residents from reporting crime; belief by the residents that crime is a source of livelihood for some people, hence the difficulty of eliminating it; persistence of mistrust between Kibera residents and the police; misunderstanding of Kibera residents of the concept of community policing; unfriendly implementation approaches; failure of the programme to incorporate civic education on the principles and practice of community policing; government laxity in providing civic education resources; equipping the police force adequately; mismanagement of confidential information by the police; and persistence of perceptions by the residents that community policing is not and effective way of fighting crime.To counter the poor public image ofthe police force, the study recommends that the police should come up with strategies aimed at establishing forums through which the members of the community can express their expectations of the police officers in terms of customer service, integrity, and accountability. The police officers should desist from harassing residents when conducting investigations, besides responding promptly to community concerns without delay. The study therefore recommends that the government should engage the services of such agencies as the Department of Culture and Social Services; NGOs, and the Civil Society in the provision of civic education to the residents so as to adequately empower them in matters of public safety and security issues.