A validation exercise took place in Nairobi, which focused on the study on democracy and political participation in Kenya, authored by professor Karuti. Issue of minority rights was debated, and some participants felt that the draft report was not broad enough on this issue, because it only focused on gender/ women. It was suggested that the topic of corruption needed sufficient focus, despite the fact that it was given prominence in the discussion document. Participants felt that there was need to have a compelling argument as to why this study is needed and who commissioned it. Issues of fragile states and freedom indexes, it was recommended, needed to be featured early on in the document. There was strong debate about recommendation on local and traditional authorities, in instances where such a process was being subjected to political manipulation, for resource control and political patronage driven by ethnicity in Kenya. It was agreed that ethnicity needed to be addressed accordingly. The validation presented an opportunity for useful suggestions that will now be incorporated into the final draft.