The government has outlined a raft of expectations aimed at accelerating service delivery, economic growth, and citizen confidence following the conclusion of its third Cabinet retreat and mid-term review held at the Kenya Commercial Bank (KCB) Leadership Centre in Karen, Nairobi.
The high-level retreat, which brought together Cabinet Secretaries and senior ranks of the Executive, was presided over by President William Ruto. In a statement released by State House, the government resolved to intensify the delivery of its services and deepen public confidence in its ability to meet the needs and expectations of Kenyans.
Among the core resolutions was the need to reimagine Kenya’s strategic economic vision, particularly in stimulating growth and creating jobs. This will be achieved through a “Whole of Government Approach,” where different ministries and departments work in synergy.
The government also plans to maintain strong foreign exchange reserves by enhancing exports and curbing non-essential imports. In agriculture, it aims to improve the quality of data in all sub-sectors to inform policy and sustain growth in food production, incomes, and employment.
President Ruto’s administration intends to accelerate the off-take of farmers’ produce to put more money into their pockets, upscale teacher recruitment to ensure an optimal teacher-learner ratio, and continue with the rollout of the Competence-Based Education and Training (CBET) system.
Other priorities include constructing laboratories and upgrading school infrastructure to improve education quality, fine-tuning the new university funding model to ensure fairness through improved means-testing, and registering all Kenyans and their dependents in the Social Health Insurance scheme to guarantee universal access to healthcare.
The government is also focused on completing reforms at the Kenya Medical Supplies Agency (KEMSA), scaling up the digitization of public services by onboarding all ministries and agencies onto the e-Citizen platform, and completing ICT hubs with computer equipment that may include locally manufactured options.
Plans are in place to include more Kenyans, especially those in informal sectors, in credit systems through the Hustler Fund framework. Additionally, the government seeks to scale up the Affordable Housing Program to boost the construction sector.
To tackle unemployment, the administration will fast-track labour mobility agreements with foreign countries, enhance foreign language training for Kenyan youth, and expand capacity in special economic zones. It also seeks to deepen intergovernmental collaboration and secure bilateral partnerships that align with Kenya’s development agenda.
President Ruto’s government has pledged to strengthen stakeholder engagement and streamline collaboration between national and county governments to ensure better service delivery.
According to the statement, “Implementation of the Retreat Resolutions during the second half of the 5th Administration will consolidate the gains achieved and re-energize Kenya’s transformation journey, cementing opportunities for expanding economic growth and creating jobs that respond to the aspirations of our youthful population.”
