Kativani Market, Masongaleni Ward, came to standstill on Wednesday as Governor Mutula Kilonzo Jr unveiled an open air market and Water point during his development tour of Masongaleni Ward.
The market will now become a key trading center and an avenue for wealth generation and revenue to the county government.
Governor Mutula Kilonzo Jr has unveiled one-of-a-kind digital projects monitoring and tracking system which will give residents and other stakeholders real time information about the status of development in the county.
The web-based portal dubbed Makueni Projects Monitoring and Tracking System (PMTS), launched on Tuesday, will showcase progress of projects at each stage from Cabinet Paper approval by the governor, allocated budget, procurement, contract award, completion and location of the projects.
Governor Mutula said this system will entrench transparency in development and weed out the problems of unexplained pending bills which have plagued counties, as well as conflict of interests in award of tenders.
The system has been scaled for easy access both on web and android devices. It also features an engagement platform to provide both general and project-based feedback from the public.
The portal can be accessed via https://pmts.makueni.go.ke
Kitui County Deputy Governor Wambua Kanani is leading a delegation of county officials on a two-day benchmarking tour in Makueni on automated cashless revenue collection and the automated system of supply and distribution of medical supplies to health facilities.
Makueni has embraced a cashless payment regime in an effort to minimize corruption risks, instill customer confidence and enhance accountability.
The delegation from Kitui was received in Makueni by Governor Mutula Kilonzo Jr and Deputy Governor Lucy Mulili on Thursday.
On Thursday, the South Eastern Kenya Economic Bloc Summit held an Extraordinary meeting attended by commissioners from the Commission for Revenue Allocation (CRA) on consultation of the fourth basis of revenue sharing.
During the meeting, the three governors Mutula Kilonzo Jr (Makueni), Julius Malombe (Kitui), and Wavinya Ndeti (Machakos) urged that county allocations be adjusted upwards. This will enable the devolved units ably address the myriad of challenges affecting wananchi.
“…The CRA must acknowledge that funds must follow functions, and that the revenue sharing formula must take into consideration the additional risks and pressure on the healthcare that the Bloc faces owing to accidents occurring along the transnational Nairobi-Mombasa Highway…”, read a press statement in part.
The governors resolved to lobby Members of the National Assembly and Senators from the SEKEB Bloc to for a unity of purpose to defend Devolution and champion the SEKEB position when the CRA revenue sharing formula is tabled in Parliament.
Governor Mutula Kilonzo Jr on Tuesday hosted a British High Commission delegation led by Daniel Wilcox, the Economic Counsellor at the High Commission, who paid him a courtesy call in Makueni
The team discussed modalities of joint resource mobilization to promote innovative renewable energy technologies and the transition from grid-powered to solar-powered systems within Makueni County.
One of the identified areas of partnership is setting up a state-of-the-art County Energy Center in Kisingo Technical Training Institute to serve the county and country at large.
The UK PACT team, county officials for Energy & Environment visited Makueni County Referral Hospital to inspect ongoing installation of solar panels that will enable 100% reliance on solar power. This project which is jointly funded by the UK in collaboration with the county government will generate 200 kilowatts and is expected to save power costs for the hospital by Sh 7 million annually.
Meeting with the Senate Committee on County Public Investments and Special Funds on Issues Raised by the Auditor General Report on Financial Statements of Makueni County Emergency Fund, Youth, Persons with Disabilities and Table Banking, Groups Empowerment Fund and the Makueni Bursary Fund for the Financial years ending 30th June 2019/20,2020/2021and 2021/2022
The intervention was done during the second wave of Covid 19 and just before the Devolution Conference.
The County is in the process of enacting the Bursaries and Scholarships Legislation which has been submitted to the County Assembly awaiting enactment.
The regulations have also been reviewed to give clear guideline on the criteria to be used in Bursaries and Scholarships issuance.
There major interventions after exiting the skewed memorandum.
a) The partnership with World Food Programme has seen the reconstruction of the lending structural aspects of the fund through capacity building.
b) The Fund, in partnership with Safaricom, has set out to co-create a system aimed at digitizing the whole lending experience
c) The Fund through the Department has partnered with Village Enterprise to develop The Makueni County Ultra-Poor Graduation Policy.
d) Enactment of an Empowerment Fund Act
e) Unutilised funds have been put on an interest earning account
Makueni has been feted by the Institute of Internal Auditors of Kenya for achieving the highest standards in internal governance and risk management.
Makueni scooped position one in the County Government and Assembly category in the inaugural awards ceremony staged in Nairobi.
This recognition reflects the county’s commitment to upholding high standards and innovation in internal auditing practices.
The Auditor General, Ms Nancy Gathungu who was the keynote speaker noted that the awards were to recognize organizations and individuals that had achieved high standards in Internal Audit Governance, innovations in the adoption of Internal Auditing standards, the International Professional Practices Framework (IPPF), Risk Management Framework and high-performing audit teams.
Makueni County Executive Audit Committee chairperson, Felix Kyengo (CPA) received the award on behalf of the county.
On Thursday, the three Ukambani Governors Mutula Kilonzo Jnr, Wavinya Ndeti and Julius Malombe held the 3rd summit meeting in Makueni where a number of strategies were drawn to improve quality of life for residents of the region.
Key highlights of the meeting include:
1. The three governors received SEKEB’s Economic Blueprint and Investment Plan from a consultant . The Bloc will initiate implementation of the First Phase of the Investment Plan within the next three years.
2. They called on the national government to address the massive pollution of River Athi, which poses a serious threat to the health of the Nation, particularly for the residents of the three SEKEB Counties. They urged for measures to force polluters to bear the responsibility by being compelled to pay reparations for the damages caused to our communities.
3. The three governors agreed to set up an abattoir in one of the counties with an area for value addition on hides, skins and other products through leather processing and other value additions. A joint Feeds’ Processing Zone will also be considered alongside agribusiness funding through the respective ministries of Trade.
4. To enhance the ease of doing business within the Bloc, the three county governments shall find a formula to harmonize and standardize county tariffs and licences.
5. The three counties have resolved to each invest in specialized health services in our main hospitals. Kitui will establish a Renal Centre, while Cancer and Trauma Centres will be built in Machakos and Makueni Counties, respectively. The Trauma Centre will help alleviate the suffering of the road accident victims along the busy Nairobi-Mombasa Highway.
6. To this effect, the Bloc is in the process of finalizing the development of its 10-year Vision Strategy which will guide in leveraging on economies of scale and concerted efforts to achieve sustainable development for the people.
Machakos Governor Wavinya Ndeti takes over as the chairperson of the South Eastern Kenya Economic Bloc during a Summit meeting held in Makueni on Thursday. Kitui Governor Julius Malombe is the outgoing chairperson.
Machakos Governor Wavinya Ndeti and her Kitui counterpart Julius Malombe in Makueni for the 3rd Summit meeting. They are hosted by Governor Mutula Kilonzo Jr
