Devolution ministry in plan to cut wastage in county projects

By KEVINE OMOLLO

Kenya; Ministry for Devolution and Planning will monitor and evaluate development projects by county governments to minimise wastage of resources.

The ministry would also engage county governments in planning for the projects so as to reduce cases of duplication.

Planning Principal Secretary Peter Mangiti said his ministry was saddened by the recent Auditor General’s report which indicated that most county governments did not utilise funds allocated to them for development.

The Controller of Budget and Auditor General’s reports also put governors on the spot, querying county governments’ financial transactions.

“We called the governors after the report and they explained that setting up structures at the county government could have been the major reason why development funds found their way back to the Treasury,” said Mangiti.

He said the ministry has now put up structures to ensure that county governments come up with workable plans which can be implemented.

Mangiti said the Ministry had also pledged to give county governments a chance to have an input in the implementation of the pillars of Vision 2030. “County governments must offer to their people what they deem is most important and some of the projects contribute directly or indirectly to the realisation of the Vision 2030,” said Mangiti.

“We have flagship projects which have been launched in different parts of the country while some have been planned and would commence in the second Second Medium Term Planning (MTP),” he added.

He mentioned Konza City, Mombasa-Malaba Standard Gauge Railway, Lamu Port Project, Lake Turkana Wind Power and Dongo Kundu Free Port as some of the projects which are lined up for take-off in the MTP which ends in 2017.