SPEECH BY H.E.

ANNE WAIGURU, OGW, GOVERNOR, KIRINYAGA COUNTY

AT THE CHATHAM HOUSE IN LONDON ON JULY 4, 2018

TOPIC: Five Years of Devolution in Kenya: Towards Inclusion, Gender

Equality and Accountable Governance?

[Devolution]

Ladies and Gentlemen,

On August 27th 2010, Kenyans witnessed the promulgation of a new Constitution. In

response to the people’s expectations of greater democracy, human rights and
accountability of the government to its citizens, the Constitution ushered in a new
Republic with expanded and transparent, political and economic structures, including
devolution to forty-seven counties. Overnight, the country created 47 county
executives and 47 county assemblies with devolved power and resources. The
transition was no small feat.

As Kenyans, we found ourselves at a moment that provided opportunity for the

Kenyan take-off, but also one that carried its own share of perils. We found
ourselves at a point of multiple transitions.

The first transition was the basic transition from the old Constitution to the new
Constitution, the Constitution of Kenya 2010. Through this Constitution the
architecture of the Kenyan society was fundamentally redesigned. The structure of
Government was changed. We moved from a quasi-parliamentary system to a
presidential system. There was a shift from a unicameral to bi-cameral parliament
that dichotomized legislative relations in a way that we had never anticipated. The
traditional relationships among the three arms of government were reorganized,
creating greater separation of powers and functional autonomy.

The second and most fundamental transition that we faced and, which is at the
heart of today’s discussion, is the transition from a centralised government to one
that adopted the concept of devolution. Through this transition new relations
between the National Government and the then embryonic County Governments
emerged.

The Constitution in Article 6 (2) provides that governments at both levels are distinct
and inter-dependent and shall conduct their mutual relations on the basis of
consultation and cooperation. Further Article189 (1) provides that the government at
either level shall perform its functions, and exercise its powers, in a manner that
respects the functional and institutional integrity of government at the other level.

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Within this backdrop however, the Constitution, in its preamble, reiterates that
Kenya remains one indivisible whole thus our devolution is not based on the principle
of absolute autonomy but on inter-dependence and cooperation. Ours is a system
that combines a certain measure of autonomy and spheres of inter-dependence. The
end result of this combination is what may be referred to as cooperative system of
devolved government. The thrust of this principle is that both levels of governments
must function as a cohesive whole in order to achieve the aspirations of our people.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Inclusion

The case for devolution is traditionally prosecuted on the ground that it brings more
people particularly those previously excluded in a centrist system, into government.
Kenya’s devolved system created powerful County Executives and Legislatures. It
constitutionally mandated equity in resource sharing and even required regions
previously marginalised to get “affirmative action” resource allocation. The new
system required inclusion of women, the youth, persons living with disability and
local minority groups to be included in devolved governance institutions. All these
have fostered inclusion and made it easier to build project “One Kenya”.

Devolution also brings public services closer to the people, who have more
opportunities to participate actively in the decision-making processes of local
policies, than in centrally decided ones. This participation in turn contributes to
improved accountability and transparency, due to the fact that people can scrutinize
devolved governance structures more closely than central governments.

The new Constitution further allowed for the inclusion of Kenyans in the decision
making process, through public participation as stipulated in Article 1(2), Article 10
(2) (a), Article 69(1) (d), Article 118 (1), Article 119, Article 174 (c) and (d), Article
184 (1) (c), Article 196 (1) and (2), Article 201 (1), Article 232 (1) (d) and (f), of the
Constitution, Public Finance Management Act 2012, and The County Governments
Act 2012.

This is intended to ensured that the projects implemented at the county level were
not just a creation of the county or national government but a solution to the
problems facing local communities, and that they are more effectively and efficiently
implemented, since devolution reduces often lengthy bureaucratic procedures for
decision-making and implementation.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

In my view, the Jubilee Government remains to large extent committed to making

devolution work. It is for this reason that the Ministry of Devolution and Planning
was established to amongst other functions coordinate policy decisions aimed at

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supporting the devolution process. I must say at this point that I was privileged to
be the first Cabinet Secretary responsible for devolution in the Jubilee government.
In the past first five years, there were various notable achievements for devolution.

First, the transfer of functions from National to County governments was

accomplished through Legal Notice No. 137, which ensured that county governments
could effectively assume their responsibilities and had the requisite authority to meet
their mandates. The national government facilitated the establishment and
operations of the County operational units including the County Executives and
Assemblies through the provision of adequate financial resources (32% of last
audited accounts in 2013/14 (Ksh210Billion), 43% in 2014/15 (Ksh226 Billion) and
now in 2018/9 (Kshs372 Billion); human resources in the form of transitional teams
and staff seconded from the national government to the Counties; and finally
through provision of the necessary infrastructure (e.g. physical facilities for
administrative and logistical purposes).

Secondly, in line with the provisions of the inter-governmental Coordination Act,

2012, as the national government, continued to provide technical support to the
Inter-governmental Coordinating Summit, and, facilitated the establishment of other
Inter-Governmental mechanisms, including the Inter-Governmental Sectorial
Forums, which provide a forum for discussing sectorial policy matters relevant to
both national and county governments, and, and established the Intergovernmental
Technical Committee (ITGRC), which was expected to manage intergovernmental
coordination matters.

Thirdly, in line with the functions outlined in schedule 4 of the Constitution, the
national government developed the National Capacity Building Framework and a
framework for Civic Education. Some of the key programs in the areas of capacity
development for the Counties have included the training of officers from all the 47
counties on Human Resource Management and Public Finance Management. Civic
Education was also carried out to enable Kenyans better understand the Devolution
process, and the processes of planning and public financial management, to ensure
that they can effectively participate in these governance processes, and make
meaningful contributions.

Fourthly, a Devolution Policy was drafted to reflect the comment from the
stakeholder engagement process. In addition, model laws for the counties were
developed to guide county assemblies on how to go about this new task.

Fifth, in cooperation with the County Governments, a Capacity Assessment and

Rationalisation Programme was developed. This included a comprehensive skills and
competencies assessment and institutional review that would ensure that skills are
matched to mandates.

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Ladies and Gentlemen,

Despite this notable initial progress, the implementation of the devolution process
has not been devoid of challenges. The reality is that, where much was shared,
much was also contested.

To begin with, the first three years were characterized by contestation over
functions and mandates. We witnessed these contestations between the national
government and county government; between the senate and national assembly;
between county executives and county assemblies; between county governments
and senate; and even between the various independent bodies with a mandate in
devolution. The contestation though a normal process of repositioning in a
transition, was at times misconstrued for instability and confusion.

Similarly, there were some tensions that were witnessed in various counties that did
not auger well for building public confidence in the state and the institutions of the
state to deliver public services without disruptions. There were threats of
impeachment to some individual governors, and even the threat of dissolution of one
county.

This was further compounded by the fact that report after a report at the time
pointed to a fundamental challenge with regard to Public Financial Management at
the county level, as was evidenced by the Controller of Budget, Auditor General’s
and World Bank reports at the time.

[Devolution is working]

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Despite those initial challenges, devolution is working, and the Kenyan public can
bear witness. The latest polls released in March 2018 by a local research firm shows
that 84% of Kenyans support devolution compared to 69% in 2014.This shows that
Kenyans in the counties are feeling the benefits of devolution.

County governments are, for instance, not only investing in health facilities and
equipment, but also directing monies to primary health care to reduce high costs of
preventive and curative treatments. Since the inception of devolution, Kenyans have
witnessed a 39% drop in infant deaths per 1,000 live births. We have also witnessed
an increase in access to specialised medical care for diabetes, renal care and
cardiovascular care.

In the road sector, county governments have so far rehabilitated, constructed and
maintained more than 107,000 kilometres of tarmac, murram and gravel roads since
the inception of devolution. The extension of infrastructure projects in the counties

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has opened up remote parts and improved movement of goods and people within
and outside our counties.

Counties have invested in agriculture, initiated value addition projects, installed

greenhouses, established new market linkages for farmers, and put more farmers on
extension services.

Counties have also worked to improve Early Children Development (ECD) by

rehabilitating deplorable classrooms, building new structures; equipping ECD
centres; and recruiting more ECD teachers.

Some Specific Examples of Devolution success stories are as follows -

1. Meru county commissioned a kshs40million sweet potato processing and

value chain factory that ensures no wastage of farmers’ produce.
2. Bomet county launched an eye and dental center in the county referral
hospitals as part of healthcare improvements.
3. Makueni has rolled out universal health coverage for which registration is
only Kshs 500 (USD5) per month enabling even the underprivileged to receive
quality healthcare affordably.
4. Kirinyaga County has initiated a women empowerment initiative titled
Wezesha Mama Kirinyaga that supports skilled women to gain access to
markets. The first project under this is the linen project in which groups of
women are engaged to sew hospital linen, which is then bought by the county
at fair price. The women save 30% of their earnings which later acts as
collateral for further borrowing to enable expansion of their trade. This model
is replicated in other projects such as bee keeping.
5. Makueni launched a fully-fledged fruit processing and value addition plant
to process mangoes for kshs110million.
6. Kirinyaga County operationalized the renal unit in the county referral
hospital, which can attend to 40 people daily. The county has reinstated
24hour services in all major county hospitals and, in partnership with
KEMSA have ensured fully stocked pharmacies, which are free for all
registered NHIF members.
7. Taita Taveta County revived farmers’ cooperatives, which had been
disbanded leaving farmers vulnerable to middlemen. This has translated to
better returns for the farmers in county.
8. Various models of Maternity Waiting Homes (MWH), also called
Maternities have been established in Samburu, Turkana and Kajiado, for
promoting delivery by skilled birth attendants, while Makueni County has also
proposed Mother and Child Shelters.
9. Ushanga initiative is based in the seven pastoral counties of Baringo,
Turkana, Marsabit, Kajiado, Narok, West Pokot and Samburu as a strategy for

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 promoting peace in the region. It has also contributed to job creation and
improving lives of women in pastoralist communities through
commercialization of beadwork
10. Kirinyaga County has bought equipment worth kshs250million to fast track
upgrade and murraming of 217 kms of roads in the first phase of road
works in the county.

[Current Challenges Facing Devolution]

Ladies and Gentlemen,

The challenges of the first few years have been replaced by a new set of challenges.
First, the transfer of functions meant transfer of resources, and while there has been
a steady increase in budgetary allocation over the years - from Ksh210 billion in
2013/2014 financial year, to Ksh372 billion in the 2018/19, delays in the
disbursement of the funds have led to slow implementation of projects and delays in
payment of salaries for county staff.

However, with the formation of the inter-agency committee and development of the
Intergovernmental Fiscal Transfers Guidelines, we are hopeful that this issue will be
resolved.

Differences between counties and national government on which roads are classified
and placed under counties have also been an impeding factor in project
implementation. Similarly, the issue of road maintenance levy to be allocated to
counties is yet to be fully resolved, with the recent government allocation of 15% in
the Division of Revenue Act 2018 being 5% shy of the 20% that had been agreed on
in an Intergovernmental Budget and Economic Council meeting between the Ministry
of Transport and the Council of Governors.

The establishment of a unified framework for pension management for County

Governments’ employees is also an issue that needs to be fully addressed. There is
need for the harmonisation of the pension discussion so that County Governments
can finally have a pension scheme for their employees.

Another challenge that we are facing as Governors is the overlapping and duplication
of functions by state agencies, corporations and regional development authorities.
Observably, a good proportion of the national budget continues to be allocated to
these institutions whose mandates are now county functions. Additionally, there are
some functions that were devolved but still do not have revenue allocations. They
include maintenance of county roads, and the running of museums and libraries.

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This issue can be resolved through the adoption of a report by a committee that had
been tasked with undertaking an analysis of the functions of county and national
government with the aim of eliminating the duplication of roles and wastage of
resources.

It is also worth noting that, for counties to realise the full benefits of devolution,
intergovernmental institutions must be strengthened and properly institutionalised to
be more effective in the execution of their mandates. The Council of Governors, the
Intergovernmental Relations Technical Committee, the National and County
Government Coordinating Summit and the Intergovernmental Budget and Economic
Council should work independently and impartially to ensure policy issues are
resolved amicably.

During this second term, the Council of governors recognises that we need to work
together in concert with the national government, through negotiation and
cooperation so as to realise the dream of devolution as envisioned by the Kenyan
people. The recently held Summit meeting between the National Government and
County Government chaired by H.E the President is a good sign of a more effective
relationship going forward.

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[Gender Equality]

Ladies and Gentlemen,

On August 26, 2016, I ventured into the whirlpool of Kenyan politics, determined to
capitalise on the Constitutional precepts that created for the office of a Governor in a
devolved system of government and allowed members of any gender to contest for
any elective position.

The race was not easy; the campaigns were particularly arduous.

First I had to face off with three male candidates, in the Jubilee party primaries,
among them the incumbent Governor, where I emerged winner after months of
tussles, bustles, and political manoeuvres.

But the real test was in the main elections, facing off with a fellow woman
candidate, but with an unprecedented political acumen and decades-long
experience. My competitor a leader of a political party; she had run for president in
the 2013 election, had been a member of parliament in my home constituency for 20
years and served as government minister for 7 years.

To say this was archetypal of the biblical David versus Goliath race is an
understatement; the only difference was David in this scenario neither had a sling
nor a stone. With only a few months experience in politics, political pundits and
newspaper columnists wrote me off. The odds were stacked against me.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

I had to work twice as much – or more - if I was to win the eventual race, I
traversed every village and town, spoke to men, women and youth, listened to them
and shared my vision of the county.

On good days, I would face jubilant supporters waving in reverence and admiration -
and on bad days, I would face rowdy opposition supporters who would sometimes
tacitly downplay my political gravity, but mostly shout me down and, in some
instances stone my campaign convoy with the obvious intention of causing me harm
and dampening my spirit.

Despite the complexity of the journey, I did not relent. I soldiered on, knowing that
my success or failure would have significant effect on the many young girls and
women who harboured similar political aspirations. And after what was evidently one
of the most backbreaking gubernatorial races in the country, I managed to clinch the
seat – becoming one of only three female Governors in Kenya.

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For decades, our society was hinged on a narrative that there were things that
women could not do – we were told that we could not do certain jobs, we could not
hold certain positions, and we even could not eat certain foods.

The actualisation of the 2010 Constitution offered women an opportunity at national

leadership. Under devolved system of government, women are guaranteed
representation in the National Assembly as county women representatives - and
nomination slots in compliance with Article 27 (8) of the Constitution which requires
that not more than two-thirds of the members of elective public bodies shall be of
the same gender.

For the first time since the 2010 Constitution came into effect, Kenyans elected three
women to the Senate, and three women governors. - Governor for Kitui Her
Excellency Charity Ngilu, Governor for Bomet Her Excellency Joyce Laboso and
myself.

Currently, the number of women in the National Assembly is 76, up from 68 in 2013;
and 21 of the 68 members of Senate are women, up from the 16 in 2013.

The number of women elected to county assemblies has also increased from 84 in
2013 to 96 of the total 1,450 in 2017.

Though we are still short of complying with the two-third-gender rule for elective
positions as a country, we are on the right track. The 2017 election saw a slight
increase in women representation from 19 per cent to 21.8 per cent; though these
numbers are still the lowest in the region. We currently have several bills that have
been proposed in parliament to advance the realisation of the constitution. We are
hopeful that with time, we will find a formula that actually works.

Amongst eastern African countries, Kenya lags behind. Rwanda has the highest
women representation at 61 per cent followed by Tanzania at 37.2 per cent and
Burundi at 36.4 per cent. Uganda is fourth with 34.3 per cent as of December 1,
2017. Kenya is still below 25%.

In the executive, just like was the case in his first term in 2013, H.E. President
Uhuru Kenyatta named six women to his cabinet in 2017, holding key ministries like
Defence, Health, Youth and Gender affairs, Lands, Foreign Affairs, ad Education.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

May 2018 marked 40 years since American management consultant Marilyn Loden
coined the phrase “glass ceiling” to describe the unbreakable barrier that prevented
women from rising to the top of their profession.

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Over the years, however – though in a small scale - women have been able to
shutter this glass ceiling. One lesson that we have learnt with time, nonetheless, is
that shuttering the glass ceiling isn’t the end in itself, what we do after that is what
is of consequence.

While there has been a progressive change in attitude over the years in Kenya, there
is still a lot to be done. We will keep at it – steadfastly.

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[Accountable Governance]

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Accountable governance refers to the collective responsibility of officials to preserve

the public's trust in government by delivering on policy outcomes and safeguarding
taxpayer funds. My perspective on the issue of accountable governance is drawn
from my personal experience.

For those who many not know, I was a Cabinet Secretary in the Ministry of
Devolution between May 2013 and November 2015 before my resignation and
eventual entry into politics. Prior to this, I had served in various senior positions in
government including as a public sector advisor in the office of the president during
the Grand Coalition government. Up until 2015, I had never been accused of
corruption, mismanagement of public funds or abuse of office.

Things changed however when I decided to blow the whistle on corrupt activities at
the National Youth Service (NYS), which was then a department in my ministry then.

In line with what I understood accountable governance to be, I invited the

Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) to launch an investigation into suspicious
unscrupulous dealings. We managed to stop some of the theft but in the process
discovered we had already lost some funds months earlier to the same individuals.
Upon completion, recommendations were made that implicated 21 senior officials in
the loss of 791 million shillings (USD 7.9 million) at the NYS.

What I did not understand then is that I had attracted the ire of faceless individuals
that were behind the scam which led to a political rebuttal that had never been
seen in Kenya before. I became the target with the keen intention of making sure I
resigned.

For months, I was the topic of discussion and a victim of a meticulously crafted
narrative pushed on social media and mainstream media. In total, I was on the front
page of local dailies no less than 26 times in just five months. This prompted me to
eventually resign November 2015.

The witch-hunt did not end with my resignation. A week after being being cleared by
the investigating agencies on February 7th 2016, the story took a new twist with one
of the key suspects in the scandal filing a sensational affidavit in an attempt to link
me to the scam and divert attention from the real masterminds.

The Department of Criminal Investigation (DCI) after investigations later found out
that the suspect’s affidavit, linking me to the theft of Ksh791 million at the NYS, was
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based on fabricated stories, and the agency recommended that the suspect be
charged with perjury. In addition to that, the Asset and recovery Agency traced and
recovered both cash and assets acquired from the initial loss of ksh791M. But such
news wouldn’t make the headlines, especially of the same papers that had
propagated the initial narrative.

What is unknown also is that between 2016 and January of this year, my lawyers
have written no less than six letters to the Ethic and Anti-Corruption Commission
(EACC), requesting them to make public the findings of the Investigation of the
sensational affidavit but to no avail. At one point I even asked for the setting up of a
public Commission of inquiry into the matter so that the truth would be known.
Again this was to no avail

Looking back, I was merely a pawn in the political chess game, with faceless
individuals using the fight against corruption to eliminate someone who was a
stumbling block to their benefitting from illicit wealth from the government. While on
the other hand, the Opposition leaders took advantage of the situation and the
charged political atmosphere to push a negative narrative that would paint the
Jubilee government in bad light in the run up to the 2017 elections, in their bid to
defeat the current regime and form the next government. In 2016, I sued
Opposition leader Raila Odinga and two senior opposition leaders for defamation and
linking me to the NYS scandal. These cases are going on in court.

It is therefore no wonder, that three years after I left the ministry, the same NYS
department is engulfed in another major scandal of Kshs10 Billion (US$100 Million)
ten times larger than the initial one. The faceless individuals are clearly still
operational in the system.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

In retrospect, and from my experience, the advancement of Accountable governance

and more specifically the fight against corruption cannot be won without re-
evaluating the key driving forces involved in shaping discussions on this subject

Transitional economies like Kenya, exhibit the identical challenges of weak

accountability structures, and, ineffective institutions resulting in waste and loss of
public funds and resources. In that environment, public trust in government suffers,
as corruption cartels can colonise many aspects of public life and governments are
then unable to adequately deliver public services. Where oversight and enforcement
institutions are weak, persons who dare take on the graft infrastructure pay dearly
as corruption always hits back, and viciously at that. This is one of the lessons I
learnt when, out of what in retrospect was naïve sincerity, I tried to challenge the
corrupt cartels in government. I paid a heavy price as I have already outlined.
Additional details however are for my autobiography.

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In theory, Kenya’s path towards greater accountability was bolstered in 2010 with
the passage of the new constitution, which introduced new structures to enhance
accountability in governance. These include strengthening watchdog institutions,
including the media, and a strengthened independent judiciary. The constitution and
laws thereunder contain extensive requirements for public officer integrity, but
similar to all transiting democracies, it will take time for these requirements to be
fully grounded.

It is however in devolution that Kenya has confronted the three inimical allies of
unaccountable governance - remoteness, opacity and civic illiteracy. Like all
devolved governments, Kenya’s County governments operate where the citizens
reside. They make and implement decisions in the vicinity of their electors. They do
not live in distant capitals disconnected from citizen influence. No county
government official desires to face the wrath of the citizenry every morning and
evening as the head to and from their local offices. There can be no greater
incentive for accountability.

On opacity, Kenya’s laws on devolution contain extensive disclosure requirements on

planning, budget and its implementation, and on audit. This reduces information
asymmetry and ensures that public information is a critical pillar in governmental
accountability. Social media, despite its many defects in expanding misinformation,
is a useful tool for information dissemination either by governments or civic-minded
citizens, increasingly making governments transparent and thus more attuned
towards accountability. These aspects would have little impact however if citizens
lack civic capacity for engagement. Kenya’s constitution requires public participation
in all matters of governance, which automatically requires governments at both
levels to invest in citizen’s capacity to engage. This responsibility is heaviest for
County governments and we have continued to challenge County governments to
enhance their budget allocations for public awareness and participation. As citizens'
awareness increases, they demand more information and more transparency leading
to increased accountability. As accountability increases, governments inevitably use
public resources more prudently leading to accountable governance and the
subsequent increased trust in government. That ladies and gentlemen I hope is the
Kenya of the not too long a future.

I Thank You.

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