The devolution experiment has disappointed, but we cannot give up yet

President William Ruto with governors after the official opening of the 2025 Devolution Conference in Homa Bay County. [PCS]

When Kenyans overwhelmingly voted for the 2010 Constitution, one of the brightest hopes embedded in its pages was the promise of devolution. It was hailed as the silver bullet to decades of centralised governance that had left vast swathes of the country marginalised, underdeveloped and politically voiceless. Devolution, we were told, would take resources and decision-making closer to the people. It would foster equity, accountability and grassroots participation in governance.

More than a decade later, the optimism has largely fizzled out. The dream of counties as engines of development has mutated into a nightmare of waste, corruption, nepotism and gross mismanagement. While a few counties have registered some progress, the general verdict from ordinary Kenyans is one of deep disappointment. What was meant to dismantle the concentration of power in Nairobi has instead created 47 new centres of corruption - mini kingdoms where political elites rule with impunity.