Kenya’s devolution implementation programme has received considerable boost following JKUAT decision to develop two new courses on County Governance at Certificate and Diploma levels that are aimed at empowering targeted officials to serve the newly established counties. The arrangement to be jointly managed by JKUAT and the Association of Local Government Authority of Kenya (ALGAK) was sealed in Mombasa recently by Prof. Mabel Imbuga, the Vice chancellor and Mr. Tarayia Kores, Chairman of ALGAK at a ceremony officiated by Hon. Musalia Mudavadi, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Local Government.
Hon Mudavadi commended the University for the initiative which he said would address the challenge of the imminent lack of capacity building that the new counties are likely to face. He added that the constitutional dispensation required a new breed of skilled manpower particularly on governance that will ensure smooth service delivery to the citizenry.
A section of mayors and councilors during the launch
On her part Prof. Imbuga told the meeting, attended by a cross section of mayors and councilors drawn from the country’s counties that the project was part of a strategy for JKUAT to attain some of its objectives particularly in the development of research and technology in conjunction with the industry. As a university she added ‘we are at the forefront in providing extension services to contribute to social and economic development’.
The courses the vice chancellor said mainly focus on specific governance areas in the implementation of a number of programmes such as ; Project Management, Research and Innovation and Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) that are crucial in wealth creation agenda at the grassroots. The programs she said had been developed through wide consultations, intensive training needs assessment and bench marking with best practices with other universities in the world. “In providing these programmes, JKUAT is offering you the opportunity to develop competencies and be effective in the practice of county governance”.