Mombasa County Governor Ali Hassan Joho is a popular figure in Kenya's political sphere owing to his flamboyant sense of style and his vocal role in the country's leadership environment.
Despite his fame, however, not many might know that he is the chairman of the steering committee of the Strong Cities Network (CSN) an organization launched at the UN General Assembly (UNGA) in New York in 2015, with seed funding provided by the U.S. Department of State.
The organization was started to facilitate systematic sharing of knowledge, expertise and lessons learned on building social cohesion and community resilience to prevent violent extremism across cities on an international basis through both regional workshops and international conferences.
According to the organization's website, the 107-city strong CSN is driven by an International Steering Committee of 26 cities and municipalities from different regions across the globe [headed by Mombasa's Joho].
Some of the roles played by the steering committee include supporting the Institute for Strategic Dialogue (ISD) in determining the overall strategic direction of the SCN, as well as the annual thematic priorities for action and delivery.
The international committee is also charged with assisting in growing the overall membership-base of the SCN by connecting the SCN to other cities or sub-national entities, highlighting the projects at regional events and conferences where appropriate, amongst many other activities.
The organization's website also informs that the Strong Cities Network is made up of member cities in every major global region, each with specific lessons, practices or challenges surrounding violent extremism.
It further reads that the cities and municipalities selected for the Steering Committee (Mombasa being one) were chosen based on their leadership and commitment to sharing information and expertise through the SCN.
The International Steering Committee convenes once a year at the SCN Global Summit to discuss the thematic priorities of the SCN and determine the strategic direction of the network.
Ever since its start in 2015, three global summits have taken place, one in Antalya, Turkey, in 2016; Aarhus, Denmark, in 2017; and Melbourne, Australia, in 2018.
On July 19, 2019, Joho acknowledged the contributions that Mombasa County has made to the SCN with him at the helm and announced Mombasa's intention to bid for the hosting of the 2020 chapter of the summit.
Some of the member cities at the summit include Aarhus (Denmark); Antalya (Turkey); Atlanta (USA); Beirut (Lebanon); Copenhagen (Denmark); Dakar (Senegal); Denver (USA); Kaduna (Nigeria); Kano (Nigeria); Kiffa (Mauritania); and Kristiansand (Norway).
Others include London (UK); Medellín (Colombia); Minneapolis (USA); Mombasa (Kenya); Montréal (Canada); Mumbai (India); New York City (USA); Oslo (Norway); Palermo (Italy); Paris (France); Puno (Peru); Rotterdam (Netherlands); Stockholm (Sweden); Tunis (Tunisia) and Victoria (Australia).
