Tana River County has launched a pilot Anticipatory Action (AA) Dashboard aimed at strengthening disaster preparedness and improving coordination of responses to climate-induced hazards such as droughts, floods and disease outbreaks.
The initiative forms part of the country’s shift from reactive disaster response to anticipatory action, preparedness and early intervention to reduce the impact of disasters on vulnerable communities.
The pilot is being undertaken under the Strengthening Local Early Action Capacities for Climate-Induced Disasters project, which is supported by the European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations (ECHO) through the Finland Red Cross and implemented in Tana River County.
The project seeks to strengthen inclusive and resilient disaster risk management systems while promoting the integration of scientific data with indigenous knowledge to enhance early warning and response mechanisms.
The Anticipatory Action Dashboard is being piloted by the Anticipatory Action Technical Working Group (AA-TWG), led by the National Disaster Operations Centre (NDOC) and the Kenya Red Cross Society (KRCS).
Technical officers from the Kenya Red Cross Society and the National Drought Management Authority (NDMA) are testing the system using live operational data to assess its performance before nationwide rollout.
The exercise is evaluating key functions of the platform, including user registration and access, data submission, approval workflows, information management, reporting, visualization, system performance, usability and data quality.
According to NDOC ICT Officer Jack Allan, the dashboard has been developed as a centralized platform for collecting, managing and sharing information on anticipatory action interventions across the country.
He said the system will capture critical information on hazards, triggers, financing, geographical coverage and the implementation status of anticipatory action programmes, thereby improving coordination among stakeholders.
“Tana River County continues to demonstrate strong leadership and commitment in disaster risk management. The Anticipatory Action Hub pilot marks a significant milestone in strengthening how anticipatory actions are captured, reported and coordinated,” said Allan.
He noted that integrating county-level interventions into the National Anticipatory Action Hub would strengthen coordination, improve evidence-based decision-making and support timely mobilization of resources before disasters strike.
“By ensuring county actions are reflected in the national dashboard, we are creating a stronger basis for timely resource mobilization to support communities before disasters occur,” he added.
The pilot is also providing an opportunity for participating institutions to document challenges, observations and lessons learned from using the platform in a multi-hazard environment.
The findings are expected to guide refinement of the dashboard before its official rollout as a national platform for coordinated, evidence-based anticipatory action planning, reporting and implementation.
The exercise will conclude with a joint debriefing session in Nairobi, where participating teams will review the findings, consolidate recommendations and identify priority actions to enhance the dashboard’s effectiveness in strengthening disaster preparedness and coordination at both national and county levels.
By Erick Kyalo
