Policies and systems adopted by Kenya Kwanza in 2023

President William Ruto at State House. [PCS] Just like any new government, Kenya Kwanza has been keen on adopting new policies and systems that are key to its bottom-up manifesto. Some were overseen while others came as a surprise to many. Housing Fund Among them is the housing levy which to date remains a debatable issue. When the Finance Bill of 2023 was signed into law on June 26, employers and employees were now expected to contribute 1.5 per cent of their income to the Housing Fund. According to the government, the fund would cater for housing needs by providing every Kenyan with an affordable and 'decent' home. However, in a recent judgement by the High Court, the levy was found unconstitutional and vague as there was no law allowing the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) to collect it. Furthermore, the three-judge bench comprising David Majanja, Christine Meoli and Lawrence Mugambi stated that the levy was discriminatory since it targeted only employed Kenyans and did not demonstrate why it excluded other categories of income earners. The three judge bench however suspended the implementation of their judgment until January 10, 2024. However, despite the judgement, construction of the houses is still ongoing as KRA on the other hand continues to deduct the 1.5 per cent. Social Health Insurance Bill The local man's pocket continues to suffer as the government recently introduced a mandatory contribution to the health sector. According to the administration, those under employment will be required to pay 2.75 per cent of gross salary to the kitty. The non-salaried Kenyans on the other hand, will part with 2.75 per cent of their earnings. This is per the implementation of the Social Health Authority (SHA) which is set to replace the National Health Insurance Fund (NHIF). The mandatory payment is important to ensure that the fund and the authority at large will be sustainable. Initially, Kenyans would contribute at least Sh500 which was not mandatory. However, with the SHA if one fails to pay, they might be locked out from accessing certain services. NSSF In July, hundreds of thousands of government workers got a salary shock after new pension deductions were effected on their pay. The new NSSF Act provided the government with a monthly contribution equivalent to 12 per cent of one's monthly salary. Six per cent is deducted from the employee's salary while the remainder is paid by the employer and applies on a graduated scale. Under the Act, employees earning above Sh18,000 are divided into two levels of contributions called tier I and tier II. Employees and employers under the tier two category (those above the lower limit) are required to contribute Sh720 monthly to attain Sh1,440 from both parties. Those under tier one are required to contribute Sh360 per month, and their employers match the same. The Act sought to increase monthly contributions from Sh200 to Sh2,160 but faced hurdles as employees and employers fought it in court. However, the Court of Appeal in its ruling said that the NSSF Act of 2013 is legal, giving the State the go-ahead to require NSSF members to make higher contributions. Education Funding (Helb) On matters of education, the government has implemented a new funding system in which all households will shoulder part of their children's education cost. Initially, every student admitted to the university through the Joint Admission Board of Kenya (JAB) would be funded by the government equally. However, in the new system, the governmet will fund students depending on their family's finacial background. On the other hand, parents or guardians in every household will shoulder part of their children's education cost, a marked departure from the initially proposed plan in which some households were exempted. The funding has been divided into five categories (bands) with those under band one, receiving 70 per cent scholarships and 25 per cent towards loans. Parents in these households will now pay five per cent of the fees cost. Under category two, students will get 60 per cent scholarships and 30 per cent loans. Parents on the other hand will pay 10 per cent of the cost. The government will also allocate each student in this category some Sh55,000 for upkeep. Those under band three will receive 50 per cent scholarships and 30 per cent loans. Parents will foot 20 per cent of the cost and the students here will receive Sh50,000 upkeep money. Band four students will now receive 40 per cent scholarships and 30 per cent loans while their parents will shoulder 30 per cent of the cost and their children will get Sh45,000 for upkeep. "This upkeep money will cater for meals, accommodation, books and stationery," said Charles Ringera, Helb CEO. The last category introduced will receive scholarships of 30 per cent and another 30 per cent for loans. Households will pay 40 per cent of the cost and students in this group will receive Sh40,000 for upkeep. Those in band one are children from vulnerable homes while those in band two are those from extremely needy households and those in band three and four are students from needy and less needy homes respectively. E citizen Another major policy adopted in 2023 was the launch of the e-Citizen, a digital platform that is said to host over 5,000 government services. According to President William Ruto, digitizing government services will increase accountability and ensure that every Kenyan can easily access government services. Some of the services include the Digital Police Station, where Kenyans will be able to access police services like the Occurrence Book (OB) number, case records, statements, and details of criminal activities online. The title deeds will also be available online. According to Ruto, already there are Sh1.8 billion saved under the programme and one can access the services by dialling *832#. Digital Identification is another service launched. This service was already rolled out in March 2023 under the Unique Personal Identifier (UPI). Every child born in March was issued with UPI which replaced the normal birth certificate. The UPI number issued will be their national Identification number. Under the Agricultural Digital Services, the government launched several services including the E-Voucher where farmers can access all farm products online and e-extension services which update Kenyans on the weather updates and possible crops to plant during that season. Wildlife services, passport, visa services and good conduct services are also accessed in the e-Citizen platform among other services. With these and more implementations adopted in their first year in office, Kenyans have had it rough. However, the government continues to reassure that it gets worse before it gets better. Will it? Only time will tell. But for now, Happy Holidays!

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Policies and systems adopted by Kenya Kwanza in 2023

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