Challenges affecting devolution pdf

CHALLENGES AFFECTING DEVOLUTION OF PUBLIC SECTOR SERVICES IN LOCAL AUTHORITIES IN KENYA: CASE OF COUNTY GOVERNMENT OF KERICHO BY VIOLA CHEBET KORIR 0725275021 REG NO: D53/CE/13082/20

CHALLENGES AFFECTING DEVOLUTION OF PUBLIC SECTOR SERVICES IN LOCAL AUTHORITIES IN KENYA: CASE OF COUNTY

GOVERNMENT OF KERICHO

BY

VIOLA CHEBET KORIR

0725275021 REG NO: D53/CE/13082/2009

A RESEARCH PROJECT SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE

REQUIREMENTS FOR THE AWARD OF MASTERS DEGREE IN BUSINESS

ADMINISTRATION (STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT OPTION) BY THE SCHOOL

OF BUSINESS, KENYATTA UNIVERSITY

NOVEMBER 2013

DECLARATION

I hereby declare that the work contained in this project is a result of my own investigation and research All sources used or quoted have been acknowledged This project has not been previously submitted in part or full for any other degree or to any other University

DEDICATION

I would like to dedicate this project to my husband Mr Anthony Korir for both moral and financial support, my father Mr Henry Ng‟eny for basic education foundation which has enabled me to reach this far, my mother Mrs Nancy Ng‟eny for all prayers, sisters and brothers for their encouragement and support and my children Kelvin and Ivy for their understanding and patience during my absence as I undertook the MBA course

I also wish to record my grateful thanks to the Supreme God Almighty for the wisdom and his mercy in enabling me to complete this proposal

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Declaration i

Dedication ii

Acknowledgement iii

List of tables vii

List of figures ix

Abreviations xii

Abstract xiii

CHAPTER ONE:INTRODUCTION 1

1.1 Background of the Study 1

1.1.1 Background to the Problem of Devolution 2

1.1.2 Background of Kericho County Council 2

1.2 Problem Statement 7

1.3 Objectives of the study 7

1.3.1 General objective 7

1.3.2 Specific objective 7

1.4 Research Questions 8

1.5 Significance of the Study 8

1.6 Limitation of the study 9

CHAPTER TWO:LITERATURE REVIEW 10

2.1 Introduction 10

2.2 Theoretical Review 10

2.2.1 Devolution of Public Sector Services 11

2.2.2 Empowerment 12

2.2.3 Resources 12

2.2.4 Legislation 15

2.2.5 Systems 16

2.2.6 Training 17

2.3 Empirical Review 19

2.4 Critical Review of Major Issues 20

2.5 Summary and gaps to be filled by the study 22

2.6 Conceptual Framework 23

Figure 2.1: Conceptual Framework 23

CHAPTER THREE:RESEARCH METHODOLOGY 24

3.1 Introduction 24

3.2 Study Design 24

3.3 Target population 24

3.4 Sample design 25

3.5 Data Collection procedures/instruments 26

3.6 Data Analysis 26

CHAPTER FOUR:DATA ANALYSIS AND PRESENTATION OF RESULTS 28

4.0 Introduction 28

4.1 General information 28

4.1.1 Respondents gender 28

4.1.2 Respondents age distribution 29

4.1.3 Respondents academic qualification 30

4.1.4 Years of services 31

4.2 Has activities been devolved 32

4.3 RESOURCES 34

4.3.1 Availability of resources 34

4.3.2 Mobilization of resources 35

4.3.3 Budget support by central government 36

4.3.4 injection of resources by donors 37

4.3.5 Donations by profit organisations 39

4.3.6 County programms are adequately fundend 40

4.4 LEGISLATION 41

4.4.1 laws for levying local taxes 42

4.4.2government has enacted sound by laws for trafic controll 44

4.4.3 laws for business licences 44

4.4.4 Sound by laws for town parking 45

4.4.5 Sound by laws for environmental protection 47

4.4.6 County assembly is fully operational 48

4.4.7 Take short time to enact laws 49

4.5 SYSTEMS 50

4 5.1 System linking the county with the central government 50

4.5.2 System channelling resources to all sub counties 51

4.5.3 System for posting staff 53

4.5.4 System for delivery of services 54

4.5.5 System for procurement of all needed resources 55

4.5.6 System connecting the county with the population 56

4.6 TRAINING 58

4.6.1 Training has been initiated 58

4.6.2 Staff sponsored for relevant training 59

4.6.3 There is on job training 60

4.7 EMPOWERMENT 61

4.7.1 Staffs are allowed to initiate and implement programmes 61

4.7.2 Staff appointed to committees and their contributions acknowledged 63

4.7.3 Staff identifies and implements projects 64

CHAPTER FIVE :SUMMARY, CONCLUSION AND RECOMENDATIONS 67

5.0 Introduction 67

5.1 Summary of findings 67

5.2 conclusions 68

5.3 Recommendations 69

5.4 Room for further research 70

APPENDIX I: QUESTIONNAIRE 75

LIST OF TABLES

Table 3.1 Target population 255

Table 3.2 Sampling design 26

Table 4.1 Respondents gender 28

Table 4.2 Respondents age distribution 29

Table 4.3 Respondents academic qualification 30

Table 4.4 Years of services 311

Table 4.5 Has activities been devolved 322

Table 4.6 Availability of resources 344

Table 4.7 Mobilization of resources 355

Table 4.8 Budget support by central government 36

Table 4.9 Injection of resources by donors 38

Table 4.10 Donations by profit organisations 39

Table 4.11 County programmes are adequately funded 411

Table 4.12 Government has enacted sound by laws for levying local taxes 422

Table 4.13 Sound laws for traffic control 433

Table 4.14 Sound laws for business licences 444

Table 4.15 Sound by laws for town parking 455

Table 4.16 sound by laws for environmental protection 47

Table 4.17 County assembly is fully operational 48

Table 4.18 Take short time to enact laws 49

Table 4.19 System linking the county with the central government 50

Table 4.20 System channelling resources to all sub counties 511

Table 4.21 System for posting staff 533

Table 4.22 System for delivery of services 544

Table 4.23 System for procurement of all needed resources 555

Table 4.24 System connecting the county with the population 566

Table 4.25 Training has been initiated 588

Table 4.26 Staff sponsored for relevant training 59

Table 4.27 There is on job training 600

Table 4.28 Staff allowed to initiate and implement programmes Error! Bookmark not defined Table 4.29 Staff appointed to committees and their contributions acknowledged 63

Table 4.30 Staff identifies and implement projects 64

Table 4.31 Model summary 65

Table 4.32 ANOVA 66

LIST OF FIGURES

Figure 2.1 Conceptual Framework 23

Figure 4.1 Respondents gender 28

Figure 4.2 Respondents age distribution 29

Figure 4.3 Respondents academic qualification 30

Figure 4.4 years of service 31

Figure 4.5 Devolved activities 33

Figure 4.6 Availability of resources 34

Figure 4.7 Mobilization of resources locally 35

Figure 4.8 Budget support by central government 37

Figure 4.9 Injection of resources by central government 38

Figure 4.10 Donations by profit organisations 40

Figure 4.11 County programmes are adequately funded 42

Figure 4.12Sound by laws for levying local taxes 43

Figure 4.13 Traffic control 44

Figure 4.14 Business licences 45

Figure4.15 Town parking 46

Figure 4.16 Environmental protection 47

Figure 4.17 County assembly fully operational 49

Figure 4.18 County assembly takes short time to enact laws 50

Figure 4.19 Linking the county with the national government 51

Figure 4.20 channelling resources to all sub counties 52

Figure 4.21 Posting of staff 53

Figure 4.22 Delivery of services 54

Figure 4.23 Procurement of all needed resources 56

Figure 4.24 System connecting county with the population 57

Figure 4.25 Training has been initiated 58

Figure 4.26 Staff sponsored for relevant training 60

Figure 4.27 On job training 60

Figure 4.28 Staff allowed initiating and implementing programmes 63

Figure 4.29 Staff contributions acknowledged 63

Figure 4.30 Staff implements projects 65

UK- United Kingdom

CDF- Constituency Development Fund

CDFC-Constituency Development Fund Committee GDP-Gross Domestic Product

TISA-The Institute for Social Accountability

ANOVAs- Analysis of Variances

OPERATIONAL DEFINITION OF TERMS Devolution- It is the statutory granting of powers from the central government of a sovereign

state to government at sub national level It is a form of decentralization

Public sector –Part of the economy concerned with providing basic government services

Public service- Service which is provided by government to people living within its

jurisdiction They are considered to be so essential to modern life that for moral reasons their universal provision should be guaranteed

County government-It is a geographical unit envisioned by 2010 constitution of Kenya as

unit of devolved government

Empowerment-Increasing the spiritual, political, social, educational, or economic strength of

individuals and communities

Conceptual framework- Theoretical structure of assumptions, principles and rules that hold

together the ideas comprising a broad concept

Descriptive statistics- A discipline of quantitatively describing the main features of a

collection of information

ANOVAs- Are a collection of statistical models used to analyze the differences between

group means and their associated procedures

ABSTRACT

Decentralization has not only transformed the structure of government but has also essentially altered the political scenery in Kenya The country has witnessed a gradual but comprehensive transfer of power, responsibilities and resources from the central to local governments The exercise began as a shift from appointed to elected councillors and leaders, initially of residence committees, and then later of local councils that have been formed in rural areas and urban wards as vehicles for county government and popular participation Decentralization has also appeared in the form of devolution of major functional responsibilities such primary education, health, water, and sanitation, and rural feeder roads from the central to local governments This study is important in pointing out the various challenges devolution might face in Kenya The findings of this study can be applied to other counties in the country This is because they have similar structures and system of governance This can help in finding and applying solutions as intended The population under this study is constituted by the entire political, technical and civic leadership of Kericho County who are residing within the bounds of the said county at the time the study is carried out Stratified random sampling was employed to select 84 respondents from the categories of sub-counties Primary data sources were used in this study The research established that training of staff as well as empowerments of the residents have not been effectively carried out Resource mobilisation locally to generate resources is lacking despite the poor funding of devolution services from the central government In order for devolution

to succeed it is recommended that training, empowerment and mobilisation of resources should be encouraged by the authorities Systems should be established at local level to ensure the devolved services reaches the ordinary citizens

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1 Background of the Study

Devolution is one among several forms of decentralization, which is a characteristic of all governments globally One analyst distinguishes vertical decentralization, which offers a vote,

from horizontal decentralization, which also offers voice (Kauzya, 2007) Thus, it is not whether

governments decentralize, but rather, how and why they do – considerations that are significant for the choice between alternative modes of decentralization Indeed, a study of decentralization

in 30 African countries concluded that:

It is significant to note that in no country was the claim to centralization as a preferred

organizational model made or implied, nor was decentralization considered undesirable, only difficult to effect and sustain (Ndegwa, 2002: 17)

The Constitution of Kenya establishes a devolved governance system in accordance with the principles and values of devolution articulated by Articles 174 and 175 of the constitution The Fourth Schedule of the Constitution sets out the functions and powers of the National and County governments

Devolution is articulated through the Constitution of Kenya and the devolution laws namely: The Urban Areas and Cities Act, 2011 (UACA 2011);

The Transition to Devolved Government Act, 2012 (TDGA 2012);

The County Government Act, 2012 (CGA 2012);

The Public Finance Management Act, 2012 (PFM 2012);

Other laws that give effect to devolved government include The Elections Act, 2011

1.1.1 Background to the Problem of Devolution

Devolution is hardly a new phenomenon In the UK, The Act of Union 1707 provided that Scotland‟s separate legal system, church and education system should continue to be respected Indeed, diversity is not an unintended consequence of devolution It is the whole point of it The relationship with the devolved administrations should be entirely co-operative, and based on free and effective communication If it would be helpful to share information on a confidential basis, you should not hesitate to do so, as long as the confidentiality is made clear to your colleagues – and as long as the information is exempt from disclosure under any information laws Tensions may arise – for instance where, say, Kisumu County‟s interest in a National negotiation is not the same as the wider Nation‟s interest But these problems can be reduced, not exacerbated, by clear and open communication

Open and effective communication also ensures that colleagues are not surprised by Whitehall announcements, followed as they always are by questions such as „What are you doing on this in Kericho County?‟ Colleagues can respond constructively, even if they are pursuing different policies, as long as they have prior warning

Above all, we must not be patronising We should ask whether a devolved administration wishes

to act in a certain way, and not suggest that they should do so or, even worse, tell them to do so

1.1.2 Background of Kericho County Council

Kericho County is one of the 47 County Governments in the country established under the New Constitution It is located to the South West of the country within the highlands west of the Great Rift Valley It is located approximately 250 km from Nairobi and is the country‟s leading producer of tea and home to the largest tea plantations It borders Uasin Gichu County to the North, Baringo County to North East, Nandi County to the North West, Nakuru County to the East, and Bomet County to the South It also borders Nyamira to the South West and Kisumu County to the West The County is home to the Kipsigis people, who are a part of the Kalenjin community The Kipsigis are rated some of the most hospital and courteous people in the country Kericho Town is the headquarters of Kericho County The county has a total population

of 758,339 persons as per the 2009 national population census

1.1.2.1 History

The origin of the town‟s name has not been established One theory is that it was home to the region‟s first public hospital, built by the British at the dawn of the 20th century Medicine in the local Kipsigis language is referred to as “Kerichek”.The name Kericho is a corruption of the Kipsigis word “Kericheek” So the story goes that when the white settlers asked, “who inhabit here?” they were told that the land belonged to “Kaap Kericheek” one of the Kipsigis clans The white man found the clan‟s name a mouthful of a tongue-twister, and just named the place Kericho And to date Kericho has been the name of the Major town in this region bearing the same name and, lately, County Another school of taught states that the town was originally home of a medicine man named Kipkerich while an other theory says the town was named after

a Maasai Chief, Ole Kericho, who was killed during the 18th century by the Abagusii Kericho County occupies a total land area of more than 2,439 square Kms It has five constituencies namely- Kipkelion, Ainamoi, Belgut, Soin and Buret

1.1.2.2 Local Authority

It has five sub-counties namely; Urban Sub-county, Ainamoi Sub-county, Bureti Sub-county, Londiani Sub-county and Kipkelion Sub-county With the emergence of County Governments, unlike other counties in the country which will have to struggle to generate revenue, Kericho County is set to have a head start- thanks to its well established infrastructure, man power and its high potential in agriculture

The County which is now in place is being headed by the following:-

Governor - Hon Professor Paul Kiprono Chepkwony

Deputy Governor - Hon Susan Kikwai

Senator - Hon Charles Keter

Women Rep - Hon Hellen Chepkwony

1.1.2.3 Agriculture

Most of the economic activities within Kericho town and its environs revolve around Agriculture With a high altitude and virtually adequate rainfall, it is the country's leading tea

growing zone with a high concentration of tea factories The change in altitude and factors cause temperature to vary from 200 within the highlands to 280 along the border with Kisumu County

at Nyando district The mean annual rainfall varies from 1800mm around Kericho town and the whole forest area from 1400mm to 1800mm.There is no real break between short and long rains The County ranks highly among the highest potential agricultural Counties in the country Out of the total land area of 2,439 sq Km, 2,195 sq Km (90% total land area) is cultivable land The County can be classified into three zones, viz a viz, high, medium and low potential zones The high potential zone occupies about 52.2 % of the county area The North area is suitable for growing wheat, horticulture and Floriculture, pyrethrum and maize and dairy farming, while the central section is mainly a tea zone, and pineapples besides growing pyrethrum, maize and keeping dairy cattle and the newly introduced Stevia crop The medium potential zone measures about 27 % of the total county area and covers the North-Western parts of Kipkelion constituency covering the rocky highlands below Tinderet forest and bordering Kisumu County

in Nyando at Fort-Ternan.This area is suitable for growing coffee and maize and for both beef and dairy cattle Towards the South, the zone stretches along the Western sections of Belgut and Ainamoi where maize, Stevia, horticultural crops and sugar cane area grown It is also home to a number of multi-national tea companies operating in the area including Unilever Kenya Tea, Williamson Tea and James Finlay Ltd, the leading producer and exporter of instant tea in the world and Kenya Tea Packers limited (KETEPA)

1.1.2.4 Transport Network

Kericho County has a comparatively good transport network Road is the main mode of transport

to and around the region There are three main highways which cut across the county leading to Kericho town, the Nakuru-Kericho, the Kisumu-Kericho and the Kericho-Sotik-Kisii highways The Mau Summit- Kericho-Kisumu highway which cut across the county is part of the 1,200 km Northern corridor road, which is critical to the country‟s economy as it is the link to the agriculturally rich region The Northern corridor road is considered the country‟s main economic artery that connects the port of Mombasa with the neighbouring Uganda and the Great Lake region Kericho town also has direct bus (matatu) links to Nakuru, Kisumu, Eldoret, Kisii and Bomet towns Rail transport is available from Kipkelion, Londiani and Fort-Ternan stations Air transport is also available through chartered light aircraft from Wilson Airport, Nairobi and Kisumu and Eldoret International Airports The main airstrip is Kerenga Aerodrome, located 6

Kms from Kericho town Currently it is being upgraded and expanded to accommodate large planes There is also Marinyin airstrip, situated 10kms from Kericho town The private airstrip is owned and managed by James Finlay

1.1.2.5 Communication and Media

Kericho town has a good communication infrastructure It is home to one of the only two satellite earth stations- Chagaik Satellite Earth Station, the other one being the main Longonot Earth Station (the only available international link for Kenya) It is also served by a fibre optic cable and covered by the fixed line operator Telkom Kenya and the four mobile operators Yu, Safaricom, Airtel and Orange who offer voice and data services The County is served by all major local TV stations namely KBC, KTN, K-24, NTV, Citizen

TV, Family TV, STV and Sayare All FM station broadcasting from Nairobi are also available including Radio Maisha, Capital, Easy, Kiss, Classic, Family, Hope, BBC, Citizen, KBC among others Local stations include Kass FM, Chamgei FM, KBC Kisumu, Radio Injili 103.7 FM, Sayare TV and Radio, Light and Life 107.3 FM, Sema Radio and The Just FM

1.1.2.6 Investment Climate

It also provides a good investment destination owing to good transport network, good communication facilities, and big market within and around the district, affordable well educated labour, excellent Security and adequate water supply Several banking and micro finance institutions have also been established in Kericho town and other major towns within the country namely Litein and Londiani They include, Barclays, Standard Chartered bank, Kenya Commercial Bank, Co-operative Bank, Equity, K-Rep, Diamond Trust and Trans National and a host of micro finance institutions and Savings and Credit Cooperative Societies (Saccos) namely Kenya Women Finance Trust, Ndege Chai Sacco, the giant Imarisha sacco formerly Kipsigis Teachers Sacco and Kericho Farmers Sacco among others.The region also boasts of large commercial enterprises and hardware shops and supermarkets spread across the entire major urban centres within the county namely- Tuskys, Ukwala, Stagematt, Uchumi and several mini supermarkets The town has not been left out in the tourism sector and it boasts of one tourist class hotel-Tea Hotel and several guest houses with lodging facilities Kericho town experiences

an acute shortage of commercial and residential houses Most of the residential and industrial plots are yet to be developed, a challenge the new county government will have to address

However, the construction of magnificent commercial and residential houses and government buildings within Kericho town and its environs are coming up at a very fast rate that former visitors to the town might not recognise the town

1.1.2.7 Education

Besides, Kericho County has several public and private Primary and Secondary schools, middle- level- colleges and universities which are spread across the five constituencies forming the county These learning institutions include University of Kabianga, Kenyatta University Kericho campus, and Moi University-Kericho satellite campus situated at Kericho Teachers Training College offering degree courses while Kericho Teachers Training College is offering P1 courses Others are Kenya Highlands Bible College in Kericho town, which has been elevated into an Evangelical University, Kenya Forestry College located in Kipkelion, Kenya Medical Training College in Buret constituency and other several colleges offering courses in collaboration of other universities, Kenya Institute of Management, Kericho Institute of Professional Studies, Eland College - Kabarak University.Niskam Saint Puran Singh Institute (NSPSI) located behind the Guru Nanak Nishkam Sewak Jatha (GNNSJ) Gurdwara and Kericho Technical Institute

1.1.2.9 Religion

Kericho residents are mostly Christians The most widespread church is the Africa Gospel Church which has affiliations with The World Gospel Mission of the USA The church has the biggest church in the district in the town (Immanuel AGC) and heart centres at Cheptenye, Chepkutung, Keongo, Kipkelion, Londiani, Kabianga, Buret and Kaptebeswet The other churches present in the district include AIC, Catholic Church, Anglican Church, SDA, Full Gospel and a host of Independent churches Kericho is also home to Africa's largest Gurudwara or Sikh place of worship It is a monument, dedicated to the memory of "Baba Puran Singh Ji of Kericho" who was the founder of the international charitable organization, Guru Nanak Nishkam Sewak Jatha which promotes the spirit and practice of selfless service ("Nishkam sewa") in the name of Guru Nanak Dev Ji, the founder of the Sikh faith The site has been gazetted by the Government of Kenya as a place of spiritual significance Kericho also holds the Muslim faith with at least two mosques There is also a Hindu population

Devolution is relatively new development in the country Empirical studies on the behaviour of this phenomenon both at the national and county levels are yet to be initiated This has to lack of authentic empirical evidence to enhance management of public affairs in era of the new constitutional dispensation in Kenya However, concerns are beginning to be registered raising the need to study this aspect of devolution from an academic point of view Thus, the purpose of this study is to investigate the set of challenges affecting devolution of public sector services in Kenya Given the complexity of the concept as well as that of running national Government affairs, attention will be given to studying the concept at a specific county level, namely; Kericho County

1.3 Objectives of the study

1.3.1 General objective

The general objectives of the study include:

To investigate the challenges affecting Devolution of the public sector services in Kericho County Council

1.3.2 Specific objective

The specific objectives of the study include to:

i Find out how training affects devolution of public sector services in Kericho County

ii Determine the effect of finding resources in devolution of public sector services in the Kericho County

iii Establish the extent to which legislation affect devolution of the public sector services in the County of Kericho

iv Examine how systems affect devolution of public sector services in the County of Kericho

v Find out how empowerment affects devolution of public sector services in Kericho County

1.4 Research Questions

i How does training affect devolution of public sector services in Kericho County?

ii How do resources affect devolution of public sector services in Kericho County?

iii How does legislation affect devolution of public sector services in Kericho County?

iv How do systems affect devolution of public sector services in Kericho County?

v How empowerment does affect devolution of public sector services in Kericho County?

1.5 Significance of the Study

Devolution was introduced in Kenya soon after independence, but it did not last for long It has been introduced into the system of governance in Kenya for the second time in the country‟s history Many consider it as a new concept and stands to face many challenges as time will go

by

This study will be of importance in pointing out the various challenges devolution might face in Kenya The findings of this study will assist in finding targeted solutions to improve the governance of the County Council of Kericho

The findings of this study as well as recommendations can be applied to other counties in the country This is because they have a similar structure and system of governance This can help in finding and applying solutions as intended

The research field also has limited studies on devolution in Kenya This paper will therefore add knowledge to research in this field

The study only covers one county that is Kericho County in Rift Valley Province in Kenya The county was chosen on basis of proximity to the Researcher The researcher can therefore travel across the county with ease during the study with reduced limitations

1.6 Limitation of the study

Financial constraints and time limits the study and hence the researcher will not be able to interview some key players in the local authority such as constituency‟s national assembly‟s, the senator and other officials

Some respondents might not be in a position to understand some of the challenges they face The socio-cultural stereotypes of the residents in Kericho County would impinge on their attitudes which might be expressed in the respondents These might negatively affect the findings of the study

CHAPTER TWO

LITERATURE REVIEW

2.1 Introduction

This chapter will focus mainly on previous studies on devolved government systems It will look

at both the theoretical and empirical evidences in devolved government studies in relation to this topic of study

Devolution has been advocated as a political response to the ills plaguing fragile and plural societies, such as, conflicts, inequalities, economic stagnation, corruption and inefficient use of public resources Besides, devolution is also implemented as a reaction to external pressure from organised groups (or separatists) For devolution to be effective, however, the criteria of subsidiarity and consensus must be observed (Dent, 2004; Kimenyi and Meagher, 2004) There are several ways in which devolution impacts governance First, by distributing authority over public goods and revenues devolution makes it difficult for individuals or groups of official actors to collude and engage in corrupt practices Second, where devolution of authority takes place along territorial and communal lines, it can foster effective cooperation within the devolved units As a result, local communities are able to mobilize social pressure against rent seeking and corruption Indeed, a growing number of countries have over the last three decades further decentralised administrative, fiscal and political functions of central government to sub-national governments Some of these countries include the United Kingdom, Italy and Spain In

many cases, devolution has also been driven by the need to bring government closer to the people

Devolution, including other forms of decentralisation, however, may not always lead to proved governance and economic performance For example, devolution may reduce the ability

im-of the national government to redistribute resources and therefore the ability to assist the less developed sub-national units In addition, devolution may lead to the capture of local governments by the political elites, especially if devolution rules and systems are not well designed, and hence allow the local politicians to use the local resources to consolidate their hold

on to political power through patronage

2.2.1 Devolution of Public Sector Services

The key economic rationales for decentralisation are well articulated by Musgrave (1959) and Oates (1972) They argue that decentralisation may improve governance in public service pro-

vision by improving the efficiency of resource allocation Further, they observe that sub-national

governments are closer to the people than the central government and as a result have better knowledge about local preferences Local governments are therefore better placed to respond to the diverse needs of the local people In addition, decentralisation narrows down the social diversity and subsequently the variation in local preferences This reduces the opportunities for conflicts among different communities Tiebout (1956) notes that decentralisation promotes competition among the sub-national governments and thus enhances the chance that governments will respond to local needs As a result, countries are able to attain higher levels of efficiency in the allocation of public resources

Musgrave (1959) further states that decentralisation can enhance productive efficiency by moting accountability, reducing corruption and improving cost recovery First, by reducing bureaucratic filters decentralisation minimizes the likelihood of conflicts between elected of-ficials and civil servants Second, hard budget constraints, usually set at the sub-national level, compel local governments to minimize the costs of delivering public goods and to optimize on cost recovery Third, decentralisation motivates social cohesion, especially at the local level, which in turn fosters cooperation that is critical in sustaining pressure against corruption Fourth,

pro-sub-national governments are better positioned to overcome information asymmetry and hence tailor policies and service provision according to local preferences

2.2.2 Empowerment

Thomas (1992:132), gives a brief definition of empowerment as a desired process by which individuals, typically including the poorest of the poor, take control over their lives, thus becoming agents of their own development This is enhanced through training on promoting development and working directly on projects designed and run collaboratively For devolution

of power to be successful parties involved should be trained regularly in order to enhance effective service provision

While in Kenya, in spite of its elaborate devolution programme, still exhibits some central government constraints on local decision making especially in areas of local taxation, including the capping of local tax levels, thus affecting the resources available to support local development initiatives these constraints have not extinguished the desire to development new ways of involving people in the decisions that shape their lives at local level, and as Clarke and Stewart (1992:9) observe empowerment is so much a theme of our tine that local authorities need

to develop strategies which increase public influence and control over the activities In reinforcing this view, the World Bank (1989:54-55), in a large-term perspective study carried out

in 1987, concluded this: many basic services are best managed at the local level even at the village level- with the central agencies providing only technical advice and specialized inputs The aims should be to empower ordinary people to take charge of their lives, to make communities more responsive for their development and to make governments listen to their people

By training/empowering the people throughout society to voice their concerns and take direct action to achieve their ends, the trend is strongly in favour of more participatory politics, greater accountability, and hence establishment of successful devolution

2.2.3 Resources

Arguments favouring the devolution of resources to local levels of governance emphasize that the enhanced decision-making power, authority and control over resources play a pivotal role

economic and social development (Cheema and Rondinelli, 2007) They contend that devolution will result in increased citizen participation in local political processes where “local governments are perceived to have the capacity to make political and financial decisions affecting their economic and social welfare” (p.12) The improved allocation of resources is the most common theoretical argument for decentralization (Azfar, Kahkonen, Lanyi, Meagher & Rutherford, 2004) By bringing government closer to local people, it is asserted that the government will be better informed to local needs and preferences, resulting in increased accountability and enhanced responsiveness of officials and government at the empowered local or regional level (Oates, 1972, Brinkerhoff et al., 2007)

Land has been among the essential resources at the centre of inequality in Kenya It is virtually impossible to separate present inequalities in land ownership from the colonial land policies The land regime established by the colonialists' vested ultimate ownership and control of land in the State This was achieved through the 1902 and 1915 Crown Lands Ordinance in which Crown Lands included almost all land in the territory Indigenous occupants and users had no ownership rights over land Rather than reverse the property regime at independence, the post colonial government simply renamed Crown Lands as Government Land The powers previously enjoyed

by the governor were transferred to the Presidency In effect, the Executive arm of the State through the presidency and commissioner of lands has the exclusive power to make decisions on the administration, disposal, and use of public land without reference to public representative organs such as the National Assembly Land rights activists argue that the state monopoly over land undermines the democratic management of resources and violates the principle of transparency in governance In so doing it institutionalizes abuse of power and encourages corruption Administration of land under the Local Authorities has also been affected by the same authoritarian and unaccountable management practices (Kenya Land Alliance -KLA, 2004a)

Political influences, abuse of power and mismanagement have thus played a big role in creating inequality in land distribution in the country (Syagga, 2006) There have been situations where contrary to the provisions of the law, land has been allocated by officers without the authority to

do so in particular the provincial administration and politicians For the most part, Land has been

a resource to be dished out to politically correct people for personal enrichment The irregular allocation of land has not only created inequalities but interfered with protected lands with

ecological integrity, cultural relevance or strategic location (Syagga, 2006) Such lands include forests and wetlands, such as the Mau Forest debacle the country is grappling with today Illegal allocations in urban areas have not only resulted in loss of public utility land such as playgrounds and road reserves but to increased spread of informal settlements in which Kenyans live in squalid conditions Continued land policies in the country have done little to correct the historical imbalances of the colonial land management system that neglected non-high potential areas (Syagga, 2006)

It is for the afore-mentioned reasons that land rights activists have argued for the creation of an independent body with constitutionally guaranteed powers to hold land in trust for Kenyans This would curtail the use of land for political patronage and rewards (KLA, 2004a; Syagga, 2006) The proposed institution should provide for effective checks and balances within its structure in the form of decentralised semi-autonomous and elected divisions at local levels (KLA, 2004a)

Among the principles to guide the allocation of financial resources in Kenya is equity, which as noted above requires that equals be treated equally and unequals appropriately unequally – the only feasible approach to delivering the Bill of Rights (Sec 5.4) The same principle underlies the CDF Act‟s allocation of its ring-fenced 3.5 per cent of national revenues Yet, CDF shares 75 per cent of its resources equally across the 210 constituencies, and only 25 per cent is distributed on the basis of poverty incidence, resulting in an outcome that is grossly inequitable, given the wide development disparities across the country

It is important that Article 212‟s provision that county governments may borrow with a government guarantee (with county assemblies‟ approval) does not increase inequalities across the counties The traditionally wide revenue disparities across LAs are likely to be seen in the comparative abilities of counties to generate own revenue, and in addition likely reflect their relative prospects for servicing loans Thus, the more developed counties – which contribute the most to GDP and have the higher potential for own tax revenues – will likely be best placed to borrow, further enhancing their capital base Such concerns should also be factored into the development of Article 203(2)‟s formula Additional to this, Kenya is committing itself more deeply into an East African Community in which it is the most developed partner

2.2.4 Legislation

The first stage of the County implementation process comprises the development of policy and legislation This was done by the Taskforce on Devolved Government (TFDG) under the Ministry of Local Government (MoLG) The TFDG was mandated to make recommendations on necessary legislation and administrative procedures for a smooth transition to county governments The Taskforce prepared a policy report, a policy sessional paper and six devolution Bills in 2011 Parliament has enacted several of these laws, including the Urban Areas and Cities Act,2011, the Transition to Devolved Government Act, 2012 and the Intergovernmental Relations Act, 2012 among others

The assignment of responsibilities for public functions is tantamount to the distribution of political power and is consequently important in every devolved system10.The Transition to Devolved Government Act, 2012 establishes a framework for the transition to devolved government in accordance with section fifteen(15) of the sixth schedule of the Constitution of Kenya, 2010 (TISA, 2012)

Parliament also enacted the Intergovernmental Relations Act, 2012 The Act provides a framework of consultations and cooperation between the national and county governments as well as between county governments themselves The Act also provides for the resolution of intergovernmental disputes pursuant to Articles 6 and 189 of the Constitution

There are few studies on legislation at the county levels, but are incorporated in political systems

of devolved governments

There is no consensus on the perceived benefits of legally recognized self-government (Belanger, 2008, Alcantara, 2008) There are also conflicting perspectives in the academic realm regarding the desirability and potential consequences of devolution and political decentralization Arguments against decentralization fall into two categories, focusing either on national effects or local effects (Azfar et al., 2004) At the national level, scholars have argued that the establishment of sub-national (or sub-provincial/territorial) governments can lead to fiscal deficits, as local government debts are reluctantly absorbed by the central government (Azfar et al., 2004, Treisman, 2007) At the local level, rather than increasing democratic accountability, it

has been argued that local elites can benefit disproportionately from devolution, effectively creating “authoritarian enclaves” in local settings (Diamond, 1999, Hutchcroft, 2001)

2.2.5 Systems

The powers and structures of devolution are provided in the ordinary law; they are more easily amenable to modification or repeal than federal arrangements and herein lay one main distinction between federalism and devolution Federalism is the formal articulation of decentralized governance within a nation's constitution (Barrett et al, 2007) The linkage between decentralization and federalism stems from determining to what extent and the type of services for which central authorities should transfer responsibility and resources to local levels in order

to most effectively serve the nation Both the notion of federalism and decentralization are based

on the principle of subsidiarity which holds that a central authority should play a subsidiary role performing only those tasks that cannot be effectively undertaken at a more local level For instance the economies of scale regarding the production of military and defence services favour national provision and central governments are also better placed to correct inequalities in resource endowments and capabilities across regions (Barrett et al, 2007) Another distinction between devolution and federation is that in devolution the local unit remains linked to the central government and other units in the political system through arrangements of mutual support and reciprocity Further, the centre always grants the autonomy (Oloo, 2006) As the CKRC (2002a) elaborates, in a federal system the central and regional governments are not subordinate to each other but coordinate

In federalism therefore there are two distinct governments in a country, a central government and

a state government at the periphery or local level The constitutional and legal sharing of power between the two ensures overlap of functions is avoided Usually each local unit is differentiated from others through a common history, culture, economic organization and viability, politics and linguistic characteristics The local unit could be a country in its own right with capacity for self-reliance or could favour union status with others to reap an advantage of economies of scale (Kibwana, 2002)

The basic characteristics that devolved governments should embody are firstly, that the local units should have autonomy and independence from the centre Secondly, the units ought to have clear and legally recognized geographical boundaries over which to exercise authority and

perform public functions Thirdly, they should be accorded corporate status and the power to raise sufficient resources to carry out functions Lastly, the local governments should be perceived by the people as belonging to them This means that in their provision of services, they satisfy the needs and remain subject to the control, direction and influence of the locals (Oloo, 2006)

The Task Force on Devolution in Kenya (TFDK, 2011) recommended a limited role for the Provincial Administration, possibly collecting taxes, supervising law and order, and promoting statehood Given its history, however, the Provincial Administration could only perform these functions effectively after itself undergoing „radical surgery‟ to excise its current ethos The retraining of public servants already mooted at the Kenya Institute of Administration and related government institutions would need to focus extensively on equipping such officers with the capacity to deliver Articles 1 (Sovereignty of the people) and 10 (National values and principles

of governance), and Chapters 4 (Bill of Rights) and 6 (Leadership and Integrity) Local Authorities (LA) are also consigned to the Sixth Schedule, where Article 18 mandates their perpetuation, subject to subsequent legislation that must be enacted within five years (i.e., by 2015)

The degree of institutional transformation is perhaps nowhere greater than in Spain where a new regional tier composed of 17 Autonomous Communities was established by the 1978 Constitution Initially only the „historical nationalities‟ of Catalonia, the Basque Country, and Galicia were expected to enjoy the highest degree of self-rule However the remaining regions have been closing the autonomy gap ever since (Solé- Vilanova 1990, 332) Transfers of authority and competences to the regions have been followed by transfers of resources, resulting

in a rise in regional government expenditure from a mere 5% of GDP right after the first stages

of devolution in the early 1980s to more than 15% percent in 2001

2.2.6 Training

Training is very necessary to both employees in the public sector and the locals Local government training and management is the level of democracy that is closest to the people and allows local populace to actively participate in affairs which affect them directly

The locals of the county should be trained on their democratic rights pertaining the public sector services County government can regulate matters that pertain to their local citizenry using their own knowledge and local expertise Reddy & Sabelo (1997:573-575) have identified five ingredients which they describe as the hallmarks of classical representative county government democracy training as practised in many countries The first is popular consultative; the implication here is that government requires the consent of the citizens whose rights it is bound

to respect and protect The dignity of the individual is best manifested in the determination and control of their own affairs There must be a constant dialogue between the governors and the governed at all times Only then can people‟s views and aspirations be ascertained and taken into account in the policy-making process

The second is popular participation, implying that individual full participation in making societal choices and decisions is a natural outcome of the endowment of individual dignity because it contributes to individual self development Responsibility for the governing of one‟s own conduct develops one‟s dignity In particular, full individual participation within the local government context contributes to the creation of community solidarity because everyone feels involved in what is going on relative to their welfare In this regard, on every issue, the views of the majority should prevail This popular participation may be achieved through meetings in small and large communities, through prayers association, neighbourhood groups and other social and political associations (Reddy & Sabelo, 1997:574)

The third is competition, whereby people with varying political views or ideological standpoints must be allowed to articulate these views and canvass support for them on the platform of the political party of their choice Within the context of democracy therefore, elections are viewed as

an important vehicle for the free exchange of views in which the voter can make a choice The fourth is freedom of expression According to Reddy &Sabelo (1997:575), another consequence

of the right to self- determination and popular participation is the necessity for freedom of expression Indeed there is no way to ascertain the popular will if the individual citizen is not free to express his or her own opinion The availability of wide- ranging views provides vital information and assists in that popular control of government by creating a well informed citizenry

The fifth is equality Equality before the law naturally extends to political equality, as all citizens should have equal access to political power and influence in shaping policy Ayoade Mni (1992:11-12), states that in modern times the notion of equality has been expanded to include equality of opportunity in many important aspects of life In that respect, equality aims at equality of opportunity in education, employment and social justice for the oppressed, neglected and the disadvantaged This expansion of the notion of equality is to ensure that each person has

an equal opportunity to develop his/her naturally endowed potential to maximum capacity

2.3 Empirical Review

Empirical evidence on the impact of devolution depicts mixed results and in some cases it is inconclusive For example, a study of the federal state of India suggests that decentralisation promotes government responsiveness in service delivery, especially if the media is very active at the local level (Besley and Burgess, 2002) Another study of Italy indicates that devolution may exacerbate regional disparities in public spending and economic outcomes (Calamai, 2009) Azfar et al (2001) finds that local officials have limited authority to influence service delivery while citizens' influence at the local level is hampered by limited information As a result,

devolution does not achieve the desired effects of allocative efficiency

Shackleton et al., (2002) suggest that arguments favouring devolution (specifically in relation to natural resource management) typically amount to little more than rhetoric We are cautioned that general presumptions in favour of decentralization are “hard to justify” (Treisman, 2007, p.246), as it is difficult to identify specific political conditions that will result in positive or negative effects (Treisman) It has been further argued that political decentralization can result in unfulfilled expectations and unanticipated problems (Grindle, 2007), and in some cases,

“devolution of legal powers and administrative responsibilities to sub national units of government has left some localities ill-prepared and unequipped to meet the demands placed upon them in the complex intergovernmental system” (McGuire et al, 1994, p.426)

When it comes to the economic factor, the key element devolution stands or falls upon is fiscal decentralisation How do the centre and the devolved units relate to each other when it comes to money? This simple question belies the difficulty of resolving matters close to the heart of

devolved states - (i) who has the right to tax citizens and businesses? (ii) On what basis will revenues generated be shared between the centre and the devolved units, and between the units themselves? (iii) How does the national policy deal with regions and devolved units that generate much more wealth than others? In other words, 'control over (Rao and Singh, 2006)

2.4 Critical Review of Major Issues

Despite the sound arguments for adopting a system of devolution, it is not without risks If not properly designed and implemented, devolution leads to the translation of central government bureaucracies, inefficient utilization of resources and lack of accountability at the sub national level (Barret et al, 2007)

Devolution may facilitate elite capture by local government and the persistence of anachronistic institutions based on patron-client relations If devolution rules and systems are poorly designed, there is a risk that politicians at the local level could use resources at their disposal to perpetuate themselves in power They accomplish this by skewing allocations in favour of their kinsmen, supporters, sycophants and all manner of political hangers-on to purchase political loyalty (Barrett et al, 2007; Nasong'o, 2002) For instance, the legitimacy of the Constituency Development Fund (CDF) has been compromised by the power vested upon the MP to singlehandedly select members of the CDF Committee (CDFC)

Critics further argue that a centralized system of government suffers informational disadvantages that negatively impact its capacity to provide an effective and balanced distribution of services (Barret et al, 2007) This occurs predominantly where the distribution of resource endowments within nations is heterogeneous Additionally, where the needs, constraints and aspirations vary across communities the central government is limited in its knowledge on the specific intricacies

of each region The concept of rural development is grounded on the foregoing logic Barkan and Chege (1989), argue that rural development proceeds most rapidly where there exists a process

of consultation and bargaining between the rural groups and the state In such a process the macro-policy objectives of the state and the self-defined needs of rural residents are adjusted to each other

Critics (Imendi, 2009) further argue that devolution sets regions with poor resources, weak market bases and capital towards further economic decline Financial arrangements under the Bomas draft specified that the national government would be responsible for collecting major sources of revenue The districts would then impose taxes or levies to be specified in an Act of Parliament From the afore-mentioned empirical study, it is evident that districts have an inadequate revenue base to sustain themselves In rural areas especially, there are few working class citizens, hence fewer thriving businesses from which to levy taxes for income generation and sustenance of recurrent expenses As earlier observed with LAs, the high debt arrears they face are the outcome of their inability to collect revenues due to them They also lack competent and reliable staff to effect and manage the collection As an immediate solution, the councils should diversify their sources of income generation and collect taxes they can competently manage e.g market gate charges The national tax collector should deal with the more complex taxes and levies

Evidence from several countries indicates the devolving state powers to sub-national institutions and entities, is done for different reasons and with different motivations While one would expect that the push for devolution would be after a carefully considered analysis of the pros and cons, experience informs us that, more often than not, political and historical factors play a significant part in the decision to devolve, and in the nature and type of devolution then set up Theoretical analysis of devolution proceeds from both ends For example, in the analysis of fiscal decentralisation undertaken by Oates, he emphasises that the 'basic issue is one of aligning responsibilities and fiscal instruments with the proper levels of government'(Oates 1999) In an analysis of Nigeria's system, Metz (1991) says that given the territorially delineated cleavages abounding in Nigeria and the historical legacy of divisions among ethnic groups, regions, and sections, the federal imperative was so fundamental that even military governments that were characteristically Unitarian, hierarchical, and centralist, attached importance to the continuation

of a federal system of government (Metz 1991) Metz goes on to add that 'the federation began as

a Unitarian colonial state but disaggregated into three and later four regions In 1967 the regions were abrogated and twelve states created in their place The number of states increased to nineteen in 1976, and to twenty-one in 1987 In addition, in 1990 there were 449 local government areas that had functioned as a third tier of government since the late 1980s'(Metz 1991) In the case of Papua New Guinea, At the time of independence in 1975, Papua New

Guinea embarked on a series of policies which, among other things, aimed to overcome two of the legacies of the colonial experiences: the high degree of centralisation of political and administrative power, and the great geographical inequality of wealth and distribution of government services within the country These policies were embodied in the creation of a national planning system with mechanism of redressing spatial inequalities, and the creation of a decentralised political system to provide a basis for wider participation in the political process (Kulwaum, n.d)

2.5 Summary and gaps to be filled by the study

The adoption of the federal systems in Kenya through the enactment of a new constitution will bring change in Kenya‟s system of governance This governance is even being watched closely after the recently concluded 2013 elections; that saw the election of five federal government leaders This has shifted attention to regional governments and everyone is watching Previous studies on Kenya‟s devolved governance were carried out when the country had a centralized system of governance This implies that there is quite limited information on her devolved governance

This study has critically looked at the various tiers of governments at the periphery level and its effects on the public sector in Kenya This has enriched the research bank on Kenya‟s devolved governance, which is quite limited As much as the findings of Musgrave (1959) have been acknowledged, the study seeks to find more about the challenges that would hinder Musgrave‟s findings in federalism in Kenyan Contexts Furthermore, most studies on federalism focus on case studies Case studies in Kenya‟s federalism are quite limited as the transition takes place The findings on the challenges on this study has thus brought into the picture clear paintings of the challenges the Kenyan counties might be exposed to

Figure 2.1 above shows the conceptual framework of the study It shows the relationship

between various factors that influence devolution and how they relate to devolution of public

-Budget support by County gov‟t

-Donations, grants and loans

-Staff identifies projects and

suggests ways to implement

Devolution of Public Sector Services

Training

-On job training programmes

-Continuous training to staff

3.2 Study Design

Selltiz et al (1976:90) has defined a research design as the arrangement of conditions for the

collection and analysis of data in a manner that aims to combine relevance to the research purpose with economy in procedure It follows therefore that research designs differ depending

on the purpose of the research

In this study, descriptive research design has been used According to Cooper and Schindler (2009), a descriptive study is concerned with finding out who, what, where and how of a phenomenon without manipulating the subjects being studied in their environment Descriptive studies have not only been useful in determining the descriptive but also in determining the relationships between variables during the study

This study aims at collecting information from the residents and County Government officials from Kericho County Both primary and secondary sources of data have been used Primary sources of data include questionnaires and interviews Secondary sources include journal articles, Government reports, theses and dissertation, and books

3.3 Target population

The population under this study constitute the entire political, technical and civic leadership of Kericho County government who are residing within the bounds of the said county at the time the study was be carried out In total the county hosts a total of 391 staff in the categories of public servants, elected members and those attached from the Transitional Authority These are distributed as:

Table 3.1 Target population

Determination of the sample was guided by the need to obtain a sample that is, as far as possible, representative of the population as a whole Since the target population involves individuals of different cohorts, stratified random sampling was employed to select 84 respondents from the categories of sub-counties This sampling technique should be used when the population of interest is not homogeneous; in this particular case the population of interest is composed of various carders of employee groups, is above 10% of the target population and exceeds 30 elements.For the above target population of 391 a sample size of 20% will be taken This is as indicated in table 3.2 below

Table 3.2 Sampling design

Population frequency

Sample ratio

Sample size Employees

3.5 Data Collection procedures/instruments

The study mainly employed primary sources of data collection as well as secondary sources

The primary source is the research itself, which entail the use of interviews and questionnaires The secondary sources of data are existing literature mainly from government institutions

3.6 Data Analysis

Data was analysed using both descriptive and inferential statistics The means and standard deviations were used to quantitatively describe the characteristics of the population and variables Multiple linear regression analysis was used to assess the relationship between the independent variables and the dependent variable The general model of this regression analysis took the form:

ϔ=α +β1x1+β2x2+β3x3+β4x4+εi

Where: ϔ=Dependent variable: Devolution of public sector services

α=Constant