NAIROBI, KENYA: In our nation’s jubilee year, the Jubilee Coalition has unveiled what many view as the ‘dream team’ to move this country forward, or to the next level, as the Deputy President always says. Just what is this next level, and where are we now? For transformational change promised by the coalition to be realised, we must first appreciate our status quo. Our economic growth limps at just over 4 per cent now, nothing to be proud of. Meaning, we are not expanding our economy to generate adequate revenues and create jobs.
Kenya Revenue Authority underperformed in its last quarter report, and unemployment is at an all-time high. Most sectors of the economy continue to underperform, particularly agriculture and manufacturing that jointly account for a third of the Growth Domestic Product (GDP). Despite a remarkable attempt by the Central Bank of Kenya to reduce the inflation rate to a single digit, interest rates still remain pretty high. The perennial volatility in our exchange rates continues to hurt the economy. The public debt is past Sh1.8 trillion, at nearly 47 per cent of the GDP, and growing! In simple terms, the national government is living beyond its means.
The Jubilee team has promised a double-digit economic growth annually, and stabilisation of the macroeconomic environment. It has kicked off this pledge with the appointment of a wily Treasury mandarin, Mr Henry Rotich, to realise this dream. The President has pledged to seal revenue loopholes and rationalise public expenditure to reduce the ballooning public debt to a sustainable level. To give President Uhuru credit, he has started off well by rationalising his Government, from 42 ministries to 18, assuming of course this process will cascade down and not just end at the Cabinet Secretary’s level. There will be no effect if the Principal Secretaries remain at 42! Public expenditure this financial year is expected to be at Sh1.5 trillion, with 70 per cent of it being recurrent expenditure or consumption. Rotich’s solution lies in expanding the GDP, period!
Deepening the rationalisation of his Government services is critical to rationalising the rising public expenditure. This is particularly important in the national government, and the Treasury is expected to cede more functions to the counties to avoid not only duplication and wastage but also unnecessary functional roles in Nairobi. I have little doubt that Ms Ann Waiguru, who assumes Devolution and Planning docket is equal to the task. As a former Treasury insider, she is best placed to devolve the ‘economic growth’ to the counties. The President’s dream team of Cabinet Secretaries has the capacity to transform not just the economy but also the public service delivery. Industries are suffering from the perennial power outages, and the cost of it too, which makes our products uncompetitive in the region. Our cities have no water. Our health facilities lack drugs.
Above all, the work culture in the offices must change to reflect the ‘business ethics’ of the new regime. To achieve the Vision 2030, the Cabinet Secretaries have to work as a team, with absolute fidelity to the people of Kenya, to pursue our development priorities. They have no political constituencies to worry about, and Jubilee has a majority in Parliament to help push their policies and laws. It is an impressive team and I have no qualms that they will perform. Indeed, I am also convinced Charity Ngilu and Najib Balala are competent and good performers. They created Jubilee and deserve to be in the Cabinet. Being politicians indeed helps them to appreciate their party manifesto, on which they seek to deliver.
