The World Bank has set a side Sh200 million to support improvement of investor friendly environment in counties across the country. The Banks’s Social Development Specialist Chris Finch, said the grant would soon be availed to the counties once all the necessary structures of engagement with the devolved units are complete.
“The grants would mainly help improve financial management of the counties, human resource, enhance public participation and improve planning, monitoring and evaluation of projects and programmes in the counties,” said Mr Finch.
He, however, observed that individual counties will have to apply and meet conditions for a slice of the grant which is under the bank’s Kenya Devolution Design Programme. Mr Finch made the remarks in Nairobi during a donor and investor roundtable for various development partners and Elgeyo-Marakwet County government.
“These are capacity and performance grants to enable counties attract investments through the creation of investor friendly business environments,” said Mr Finch. National Treasury Cabinet Secretary Mr Henry Rotich who was the chief guest at the event lauded the World Bank support to the counties.
“This assistance provides counties with better opportunities to design better governance structures that would spur development at the grassroots,” said Mr Rotich. However, he urged counties to come up with better property taxes and avoid over burdening investors through double taxation and exorbitant levies.
Governor Alex Tolgos also welcomed the World Bank support noting that it was the reason the County was holding the roundtable to seek funds to bridge its development gaps. “My County is one of those receiving the lowest allocations from the national treasury despite the huge development expectations. This financial year we received Sh3.2 billion yet our development demands require at least Sh7.6 billion annually,” lamented Mr Tolgos.
He observed that this has made it hard for the county government to organise an international investment conference as it would eat into the county’s budget which is not sufficient. “That is why we resorted to this donor and investment roundtable,”the governor said.
On his part, Senator, Kipchumba Murkomen, poked holes in the Commission for Revenue Allocation (CRA) formula of allocating monies to the counties saying that it is simplistic and unfair to counties like Elgeyo-Marakwet that has great potential but is placed third last in allocation.
“CRA should allocate money for development on individual County’s unique economic ability to contribute to the national development agenda,” Mr Murkomen said. The Senator threatened to shoot down the formula at the Senate if it did not cater for the development considerations. The roundtable was also attended by representatives of USAID, Trade Mark East Africa, FAO, GIZ, and World Vision among others.
Source: Daily Nation

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