AKN Community Conversations
Channel: Community Stories of Modern Slavery Migori County
Date: 2021-04-13

This video forms part of the community media outputs of the Community Stories of modern slavery in Migori County, Kenya research project. 'Community Stories' is a phase 2, Antislavery Knowledge Network (AKN) programme funded by the UK Arts & Humanities Research Council (AHRC) and the Global Challenges Research Fund (GCRF).
Project Team
Principle Investigator - Dr Peter Day, University of Brighton, UK
Co-Investigator - Prof. Jerry Agalo, Rongo University, Kenya

Co-Investigator - Isabel Zattu,  Kibabii University, KenyaThis workshop series was facilitated by Isabel Zattu, supported by Jerry Agalo.


The video marks the starting point of a Community [media] Based Participatory Research (CmBPR) project belonging to the second phase of the Anti-Slavery Knowledge Network (AKN) Programme funded by Global Challenges Research Fund (GCRF) through the Arts & Humanities Research Council (AHRC) in the UK. The acdemic partners are Dr Peter Day from the School of Arts & Media at the University of Brighton (Principal Investigator); and Co-Investigators Prof Jerry Agalo from the School of INFOCOMS, University of Rongo; Ms Isabel Zattu from the University of Kibabi and for the first part of the project, Mr. Enoch Mac'Ouma (Mac) from the University of Rongo. Our community partners come mainly from the community in and around Cham gi Wadu in Migori County.

Our purpose here was to facilitate informal conversations with community groups and organisations in order to contextualise and understand community perceptions of modern slavery and whether they we willing to form part of a CmBPR project. In a way these conversations could be considered as a form of baseline survey that would enable the academic researchers to assess community perspectives; knowledge and potential participants. A form of asset mapping. However, it was also important that community participants, many of whom we already had a relationship with through Community Media 4 Kenya (a partnership network of Kenyan universities; community groups; youth groups and the University of Brighton)  (mutual sensitization), were able to discuss the project and how their community might benefit from their participation. In essence the Community Conversations approach we adopted acted as a form of mutual sensitisation.

The video provides insights into discussions held in 3 different locations. 1) The offices of the Area Chief with representatives from a number of community groups from Cham gi wadu; 2) representatives from various Women’s groups across the area, at Orembe Market; and finally with staff and pupils from the Mixed Secondary School at Omware.