AfriPulse
Nairobi Governor Johnson Sakaja held an inaugural meeting on Monday, weeks after the county government signed a cooperation agreement with the national government.
Sakaja explained that the Urban Areas and Cities Act allows for this partnership, though the provision had remained dormant until now. He reminded the press that while Nairobi functions as a devolved unit, it also serves as the nation’s capital and the seat of the national government.
“We host the diplomatic community and therefore, infrastructure to support the seat of the capital and the seat of the national government needs that coordination,” Sakaja said.
Sakaja argued that the city cannot operate or find funding like a typical county, nor can it rely solely on the standard equitable share formula used for other regions.
“So for me it’s a milestone that we’re able now to have this coordination together. The agreement was taken through public participation on February 26 at City Hall, and on the 27 in the 17 subcounties. The members of the public overwhelmingly support this because it’s about service delivery, and the report was submitted on the 1st, I think the 1st or 2nd of March at the county assembly,” Sakaja said.
Sakaja explained that the county will use this new framework to secure additional resources from both the national and county budgets, though each level of government will maintain its specific duties.
“We are not going to create other institutions; that was the agreement, let us use the structures that we already have within the national government and also within the county government.”
Sakaja noted that the meeting would also focus on establishing a joint secretariat. He confirmed that the county would share the assembly’s report with the national government.
“There were minor amendments that they proposed that we shall discuss at the steering committee,” he said.
The Governor outlined a two-tier structure for the agreement.
“We have a steering committee that is chaired by the Prime Cabinet Secretary and has cabinet secretaries and representation from Nairobi County, and we have this implementation committee.”
Sakaja called the implementation committee the engine that will drive results.
“We want to be able to move quickly. We are to meet once a month according to this provision, but I think in the beginning, for the first month, we shall meet possibly weekly, I guess for the first month, and fortnightly, and we shall be flexible enough to have it virtual so that we can also keep moving. I appreciate that all of you are very busy Kenyans in your different dockets, but Nairobi is lucky that once a week we can have the focus of the national government for our capital city,” Sakaja said.
Sakaja remarked that this partnership should have started 14 years ago, noting that he first thought of the agreement while serving as the city’s senator. He explained that the inaugural meeting focused on “housekeeping” and setting the ground rules for future sessions.
The interim secretary has already prepared an agenda to form committees and establish a work plan. According to Sakaja, this first meeting aimed to set the tone, determine how the teams will coordinate, and finalize the various subcommittees. The agreement specifically targets improvements in roads, housing, infrastructure, and service delivery.
Sakaja noted that the meeting took place amid devastating floods that have claimed lives and caused significant hardship for city residents.
He explained that the steering committee will provide general policy and direction, with a standard schedule to meet every three months. However, the governor added that the committee remains ready to meet more frequently whenever necessary to ensure they deliver results.
Sakaja also clarified that principal secretaries will serve as the accounting officers, alongside their counterparts in the county government.
Several key leaders attended the inaugural meeting, including Deputy Governor Njoroge Muchiri, PS for Environment Festus Ng’eno, and NEMA Director General Mamo Mamo. They were joined by representatives from the Office of the Prime Minister, the Devolution Ministry, the National Treasury, the Nairobi Rivers Commission, and members of the County Executive.
Source: NairobiWire.com | Read the Full Story…
