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Top German Firm Ready to Partner with Makueni for Roads Constructions and Minerals Exploration

A leading Germany company specialized in roads construction, equipment and mineral extraction technologies has expressed its interest in partnering with Makueni County.

The German company is now among several international and local organizations that have shown interest in the unexplored mineral world of Makueni County.

During the Road Technology Days 2018 workshop which took place in Ludwigshafen, Germany, the company indicated it was ready to partner with Makueni County in developing and constructing low cost rural sector roads.

Makueni County ECM for Roads, Transport, Energy and Public works Eng. Sebastian Kyoni who is in Germany welcomed the move by Wirtgen Group GmbH to venture into the local road works and the mining sector.

“I have represented our case here very well and we are hopeful that the interest shown by the Wirtgen Group will be escalated to the next level. Some 4000 delegates are also attending this workshop,”Mr Kyoni said.

The company will as well assist in acquisition of equipment and technology transfer to the county roads team on low cost rural roads construction techniques through Panafrican Equipment Kenya Limited, its subsidiary in Kenya

Nazi Signs MoU on Menstrual Hygiene Management

Makueni County First lady Nazi Kivutha on Tuesday signed a Memorandum of Understanding between the County First Ladies Association, African cotton Industries Limited and Kenya Red Cross Society.

The tripartite partnership is geared towards implementing menstrual hygiene management program across all the counties

The main agenda of the MoU is to create awareness on adolescent reproductive health needs and provision of conducive policy and social environment for menstrual management

Nazi, who is also the chairperson to the First Ladies association, said the MoU will create a platform in which the parties will cooperate in the realization of the respective strategies and plans.

“The program will focus on menstrual hygiene management, adolescent sexual and reproductive health education, nutrition education, mentorship and life skills development and policy influence,” the First Lady said.

According to Nazi, the program will be launched on May 3, 2018 before a coordinated implementation can kick off

She said the purpose of the MoU was to lay out the framework for collaboration between the parties adding that it will help promote joint actions by the three groups.

The parties will in accordance with the provisions of the MoU, Nazi said will endeavor to work together and maintain a continuous working relationship.

Activities to be undertaken under the MoU will be identified and jointly implemented by the parties.

Also to be undertaken includes advocacy for reproductive health, campaign against FGM and early childhood marriages among other Gender Based Violence (GBV) issues.

The First Ladies Association will help the group with mobilization of resources, mentorship, coordination and administration of the program

  • April 19, 2018 in News

Minister Tips Teachers on Energy-saving Technology

Secondary Schools in Makueni County have been urged to use environmental friendly rocket stoves in order to save on the cost of fuel and ensure a clean environment. County Executive Committee Member for Roads,Transport and Energy Eng Sebastian Kyoni said that rocket stoves could help schools save millions spent on cooking fuel per annually.

He advised that schools could adopt the usage of rocket stoves known for efficient firewood consumption to protect the environment and cut fuel costs. He said the stoves were good in maximizing heat transfer to the food being cooked and created improved working conditions and production of healthy food.

“This is a new technology that our schools must all move to. It will help a great deal in reducing environmental degradation,”Mr Kyoni said. The ECM who was addressing teachers during this year’s Kenya Secondary Schools Heads Association conference for Makueni head teachers in Mombasa also advised schools to use solar as a way of saving on energy.

He said Makueni being one of the counties known for longer sunny seasons could turn the solar menace into a real blessing by investing on solar energy. “Makueni receives sunshine throughout the year making it conducive for solar energy harvesting,” Eng Kyoni said.

Makueni County Has Spent 265 Million on Bursaries and Scholarships since 2013

Ksh. 265 Million Spent on Bursaries and Scholarships since 2013

Makueni County government has spent Sh 265 million on bursaries and scholarships to support students from poor families to pursue education.

Deputy Governor Adelina Mwau said the government is putting more resources on education as it acknowledges it is an investment for the future of the county.

She said that the county has also been giving out full scholarships to bright needy students adding that 190 beneficiaries have so far been listed since 2013.

She further indicated that 79 students have further benefited from the program this financial year.

“The government of Makueni county acknowledges education as an investment for our children, being the most important aspect in empowering our youth to become responsible and productive citizens ,”the Deputy Governor said.

But the DG also told teachers that incidences of sexual assaults were in the increase and that it could compromise learning in the area.

She said that as part of the government’s decision to support empowerment on gender based violence and sexual abuses an outreach program will be initiated in schools.

“I am glad to inform you that the government of Makueni County is in the process of initiating a school outreach program for children in our county,” she said.

She said the program has been necessitated by the increasing cases of sexual and gender based violence incidences in the county including defilement, incest, rape, verbal and psychological abuse, domestic violence and sexual harassment among others.

The Deputy governor decried the alarming levels of sexual violence cases in Makueni County despite existence of legislations meant to deal harshly with perpetrators.

The Deputy Governor appreciated the role played by teachers in nurturing and mentoring young people adding that it required dedication to accomplish.

“I wish to state that teachers are role models and mentors and the kind of values that are inculcated in the children have direct effect on society and the development of our children,” said the Deputy Governor

She was speaking when she closed the sixth edition of the Kenya Secondary Schools Heads Association-Makueni Chapter at the Travelers Hotel in Mombasa.

She was accompanied by several top government officials led by County Secretary Paul Wasanga among others.

Mr Wasanga said that teachers are key to the county’s economic empowerment adding that governor Prof Kivutha Kibwana’s regime would work closely with them to achieve four key pillars of the county’s development plan.

“Our main agenda is to ensure economic empowerment for our people and to maske clean portable water available to households in Makueni,”Mr Wasanga told the Kessha members.

Water Committees to be Dissolved: Kisyula

Water Committees to be Dissolved

Water committees in Makueni County will be dissolved and new ones reconstituted to ensure efficiency in the management of the critical water sector in the county Water Executive Committee Member Robert Kisyula has said.

Mr Kisyula said that his department was keen to oversee an efficient water sector adding that supply of water to Makueni County residents is top priority issue in the county government.

“We are going to dissolve all the water committees in Makueni and reconstitute new ones. We have a very high target set in the water sector which we must meet,” the ECM said.

He was speaking in Mombasa where county officials met Secondary school head teachers during this year’s Kessha Conference for Makueni Chapter held at the Travellers Beach Resort.

Mr Kisyula urged secondary schools heads to partner with the county government to achieve the water agenda.

The ECM said that institutions should harvest rain water from roofs to make sure that all public and private institutions have sufficient potable water.

“If every school in Makueni had tanks to harvest the water that runs during rainy seasons, the shortage of water in schools and nearby communities would be a thing of the past,” the ECM said.

Rain water harvesting according to Mr Kisyula is one of the game changers in making another Makueni possible where every household has sufficient potable water for domestic use in order to stop the “ fetching water ideology” in the county.

“Since we were kids, we were taught that water is fetched. We wait for the rain to pour down for a whole night then the following morning we follow it to the rivers when it is already contaminated,” he explained.

He further added that every household in the county is capable of becoming food secure and economically empowered by adopting the “1 acre rule” initiative.

Makueni County has since the wake of devolution done several dams and sand dams as well as drilled boreholes and collaborated with various development partners through the Billion Dollar Business Alliance to ensure that all households have access to clean water.

He further challenged the heads to set good examples in the villages by installing at least two 100M3 water tanks in their homesteads, adding that it will ensure availability of potable water supply for domestic use for a whole year.

Kessha Makueni Chapter chairman Julius Mutwii who was the host said teachers are appreciating the support given by the county government including sponsorship of various teachers projects including scholarships to students.

“We are very happy with progress being made by our county. Infact the whole country is talking about Makueni.And they are doing so positively, ” said Mr Mutwii.

Other top government officials who graced the KESSHA conference included the deputy governor Adelina Mwau, county secretary Paul Wasanga, CEC, Roads, transport and energy, Engineer Sebastian Kyoni and CEC for Education and ICT, Dr. Naomi Makau.

  • April 13, 2018 in Water

Tell us in advance when government is facing cash crunch: Kibwana

Governors now want the national treasury to give clear and prior information regarding delays in disbursement of cash for counties to stop anticipatory budgeting.Makueni Governor Prof Kivutha Kibwana warned that unreliable cash releases has forced many counties to abandon projects after failing to honour promises to suppliers and contractors following lengthy delays in disbursement of county allocations by the Treasury.

Prof Kibwana who was speaking at the inaugural retreat of the Senate Standing Committee on Justice, Legal Affairs and Human Rights  in Malindi said that counties need to know the actual cash release schedules to enable them to plan how to roll out their programs.

The governor urged the senate to intervene over the delays which he said had paralyzed many counties’ programs leaving many peripheral governments fighting legal battles with contractors.

“I have advised that there should be a candid discussion every time the National Government faces a financial shortfall so that counties don’t budget in anticipation for money that will not come,” Prof Kibwana told Senators at the Ocean Beach Resort in Malindi.

The governor who made a presentation on safeguarding constitutionalism in the implementation of devolution also urged the senate to harmonize their mandate so that counties are not forced into situations where they have to face two parallel inquiries from the senate and county assemblies on the same matter sometimes with conflicting verdicts.

“Though am not complaining as a person it would have been better if the senate came up with an harmonized understanding on how to do oversight. So that governors do not have to face same inquiries at the Senate and at the County assemblies-sometimes ending up with clashing resolutions,” Prof Kibwana noted.

He further told the Senators who also included Speaker Kenneth Lusaka that governors had asked to have an inquiry on county finances for which they had been summoned to appear from next week postponed to give them time to conclude similar processes already underway at the county assemblies.

“We have been asked to appear in the Senate over audit queries from Monday. I personally have no problem with that. But the council of governors has requested that you postpone it to allow us clear with county assemblies who have also summoned governors over the same,” the Governor said.

The governor said that usurping of functions already devolved and neglect of others that should be undertaken by the national government was a major crisis at the county level.

“Sometimes the national government is holding on to functions that should be done by counties but counties are also forced to step in sometimes initiating projects that should be undertaken by national government like coming up with scholarships and the rest,” he said.

The governor who represented the Council of Governors at the retreat also said that the release of equalization fund which was meant for poor counties was delayed under the first devolution regime and called for intervention of the senate to ensure timely releases.

Prof Kibwana also urged the senate to support calls for the release of more funds to the counties adding that the 15 percent allocation so far which has accumulated to over 1 trillion shillings for the last five years was not enough.

Mr Lusaka said that the Senate will support governors adding that though the first senate may have failed in achieving its mandate when Senators locked themselves up in sibling rivalry battles with governors the second senate is changing the game.

“We are not here to frustrate the governors. We will facilitate them to ensure devolution works,” said Mr Lusaka himself a former governor.

He said that the Senate will as from July initiate a rotational assembly scheduling of its sessions which will be hosted by various counties starting with Uasingishu in July.

“We are going to hold our assemblies at the counties. This will be rotational and we will start from July, “he said.

He also promised to ensure that senate works on the clarity on its roles and that of the county assemblies to eliminate duplication of roles.

Justice Jactone Ojwang who attended the retreat to represent the Chief Justice  admitted that the judiciary had in certain cases gone overboard in making some rulings adding that it is not the work of the courts to fetch for cases.

  • April 11, 2018 in News

Kibwana in Talks with UN-Habitat over Upgrade Plans for County Towns

Makueni County has initiated talks with the UN-Habitat for a partnership in upgrading the county’s urban settlements.

In a meeting between Governor Prof Kivutha Kibwana and the UN-Habitat regional director for Africa Prof Naison Mutizwa-Mangiza at the United Nations headquarters in Nairobi on Friday the two explored different collaborative opportunities through which the partnership would be staged.

Prof Mutizwa and Prof Kibwana agreed that the two institutions would develop a joint framework to address issues of solid waste management, urban settlements upgrading and youth empowerment once a memorandum of understand on the partnership was developed.

Prof Mutizwa indicated that the UN-Habitat is committed to developing one million housing units in Kenya in the next five years, and that Makueni stood a good chance of benefiting from the scheme with the right collaborative framework.

“Our 2016-2036 urban agenda focusses on delivering new, affordable and adequate quality housing in urban places with slums upgrading a key priority. Makueni should take advantage of this,” he said.Prof. Kibwana said his government is conducting a town planning of 120 urban places across the county and will move with speed to develop a partnership agreement with UN-Habitat to upgrade several of them, especially the county capital, Wote.

He cited a stalled housing scheme in Wote, previously initiated by the ministry of public works and housing which he said if fully developed would significantly offset the housing shortages in the county capital.The governor said the County government is willing to adopt the stalled project if there was a proper agreement between his government and the national government.

He said the housing project has suffered extreme vandalism and cannibalism but could be completed and availed for use if the two levels ‎of government agreed o way forward.“A number of civil servants working in Makueni seek housing in Machakos and some even operate from Nairobi for lack of adequate decent housing in Wote.

We will seek to partner with UN-Habitat and the National government to complete the scheme and settle the housing challenge,” he said. Prof Kibwana added that his government will also seek a partnership with the UN body to complete formulation of its spatial plan, develop a youth empowerment one-stop shop and enhance revenue generation in urban places.

On her part, Mwau said the county is ready to work with the UN body to benefit from technical support in various aspects of the areas targeted by the proposed partnership. “We are very keen on this engagement and more so partnership in the area of waste disposal management system and production of solar energy,” she said.

A UN-Habitat delegation is scheduled to visit Makueni on a familiarization tour before finally prioritizing areas of partnership with the county government.

Universal Healthcare Conference 2018

Universal Healthcare Conference 2018

A two day conference at Wote, Makueni, on Universal Healthcare coverage ended Thursday with a rallying call to the national government to implement the programme across the country.

The conference brought together multi-sectorial stakeholders and agencies to deliberate on the possibilities and framework for implementation of a Universal Healthcare programme to accord Kenyans quality, accessible and affordable healthcare.

Host governor Prof Kivutha Kibwana described the conference as a historic event that will revolutionize the health sector if its deliberations are effectively implemented.

“If there was ever any doubt on the possibility of achieving Universal Healthcare in Kenya, that doubt has been debunked by the Makueni conference,” he said.

“A major take-home for everyone is that Universal healthcare is achievable with the right framework and goodwill by all supportive agencies. Strategic partnerships are the key to achieving this dream,” said Prof Kibwana.

The Makueni governor said the experiences of several counties such as Makueni, Laikipia and Kakamega that have tried different facets of universal healthcare programmes is testimony enough that it can be rolled out nationally with success.

United Nations Development Programme resident representative to Kenya Siddharth Chatterjee said the surging Kenyan population calls for a rethink in the country’s healthcare system.

“By 2050, Kenya’s population is likely to hit 90Million. This will by all means exert pressure on the country’s health sector,” Mr Chatterjee noted.

He called for preventive healthcare system with focus on immunization more than the curative  system.

He said mainstreaming of community health workers into the healthcare system would boost the preventive system.

Kenya Healthcare Federation Chief Executive Officer Dr. Amit Thakker said the private sector is willing to play a key partner to the Universal Healthcare programme.

He pledged pro-bono services in support of the improvement of the Makuenicare universal healthcare programme.

Planning Principal Secretary Dr Julius Muia who graced the event said if corruption was eliminated fro the health sector,the Universal Healthcare programme would be implemented without the need to look outside the country.

AMREF Health Africa Chief Executive Officer Dr Githinji Gitahi said the foundation would play a key role in the Universal Healthcare Conversation through capacity building and training.

He said AMREF will soon commence construction works for a medical university at Makindu on a 50-acre piece of land donated by the Makueni County government, which would be key in medical training and research.

Other leaders who graced the event include Laikipia Governor Ndiritu Muriithi, Prof. Khama Rogo a World Bank health specialist and Makueni deputy governor Adelina Mwau.

County Government Keen on Commercial Beekeeping

Makueni Deputy governor Adelina Mwau on Wednesday distributed beekeeping equipment to farmers in Kibwezi and Kathonzweni as county government turns focus on commercial honey harvesting.

Mwau said the county is capable of high honey production adding that the government is going to work with farmers to ensure they make the best out of their potentials.

She said honey is highly marketable both locally and internationally and that Makueni being largely semi-arid with vast land populated with vegetation ideal for beekeeping could not be left behind.

“At the moment we have set aside two million shillings this financial year as initial support for bee keeping initiatives,” Mwau said.

She said bee keepers in Makueni county have also benefited from support from partners who are supporting trainings, workshops and equipment donations to farmers.

Mwau distributed several catcher boxes, langstroths, harvesting kits, industrial seal liners, hot air guns, cup sealing machines, beehives amongst others to the farmers.

“We have also sponsored several beekeeping farmers for benchmarking in Kitui, Embu and Baringo counties who are now training the rest,” she added.

Governor Kibwana Feted for Outstanding Devolution Implementation

Makueni governor Kivutha Kibwana has been honored by the Kenya Human Rights Commission for his outstanding performance, reformist agenda and fight for human rights in the country.

Together with Zarina Patel an environmental activist, cartoonist Godfrey Mwampembwa (GADO), John Nottingham a former colonial District Commissioner the four were recognized and awarded by the human rights body during its 25th anniversary dinner in Nairobi on Wednesday.

The implementation of model public participation system by Prof Kivutha Kibwana’s government in Makueni County was also cited as reason for the honour.

Prof Kibwana was described as a top performing governor due to the reforms he has introduced in his county.

 

“The Makueni governor has introduced reforms revolving around the implementation of free universal health care, issuance of title deeds and the introduction of processing plants to better accommodate the work of mango and milk farmers.” read a citation by KHRC on Prof Kibwana.

The Makueni governor’s previous work at the National Convention Executive Council, where he pushed for constitutional reforms and national dialogue in the 90’s also contributed to his award as an outstanding reforms champion.

While accepting the recognition, the governor said he dedicated the award to the people of Makueni, who have shaped their government to great heights through participation in the county’s development agenda.

“During the making of the 2018-2022 County Integrated Development Plan, over 120,000 people out of a population of about one Million took part through public participation forums. It is the People’s contribution towards development that has brought us to where we are.” he said.

Kisumu Governor Prof Anyang Nyong’o who was present hailed Prof Kibwana for his achievements as governor adding that his exemplary performance was admirable and record setting.

“When I grow up. I want to be like Prof Kibwana. He has set the record which all governors must follow,” Prof Nyong’o said.

The anniversary ceremony was graced by among others; Wiper Leader Kalonzo Musyoka, KHRC chairman Makau Mutua, Public Service Cabinet Secretary Margaret Kobia, former senate speaker Ekwe Ethuro and former Justice and constitutional affairs minister in President Mwai Kibaki’s administration Martha Karua

  • April 3, 2018 in News