President Kenyatta commissions Panel of Eminent persons for CPRM

President Uhuru Kenyatta on 4th July commissioned a Panel of Eminent Persons for the County Peer Review Mechanism (CPRM) to henceforth and for the next three years help steer county peer reviews, in furtherance of good governance and continuous improvement of service delivery in the counties.

Members of the Panel of Eminent Persons for the County Peer Review Mechanism, whose role will be to ensure the reviews are objective, effective and credible, include Prof. Olive Mugenda, Archbishop Emeritus Eliud Wabukhala, Amb. Rukia Ahmed Subow and Dr. John Kakonge. Others are Dr. Josephine Kulea, Dr. Wanjiru Kamau, Dr. Hassan Bashir, Mr. Pete Ondeng and Mr. Salesa Adano Abudo.

In a speech read on his behalf by the Head of Public Service Dr. Joseph Kinyua at State House, Nairobi, President Kenyatta said the commissioning of the CPRM Panel of Eminent Persons gives impetus to the Open Government Partnership’s (OGP) efforts aimed at enhancing service delivery in the counties.

The President thanked the eminent persons for volunteering to serve as the first panel for the County Peer Review Mechanism as a duty of patriotism.

The Eminent Personalities will be charged with the responsibility of discussing with individual governors the findings arising from the peer reviews and how they will be implemented for the benefit of local citizens as well as the good of the country.

The County Peer Review Mechanism, modeled on the African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM), will culminate in a national summit of the CPRM where governors will peer-review each other while the Presidency will be an observer as an interested party.

The CPRM initiative, one of President Kenyatta’s legacy projects, is a multi-agency effort involving more than 20 state agencies, constitutional commissions and independent offices under the coordination of the NEPAD/APRM Kenya Secretariat in partnership with the Council of Governors (CoG).

The initiative grants citizens opportunities to democratically dialogue with their leaders and mutually agree upon commitments to be prioritized for implementation.

Besides enhancing public participation in governance and development, the CPRM reports will also be useful as oversight instruments for Members of County Assemblies and the houses of Parliament. 

Remarkably, Kenya is the first member state of the 42 members-strong APRM to voluntarily cascade the principles of governance to sub-national levels through actual peer-reviews pitched at the level of governors.

President Kenyatta commended Meru, Tharaka Nithi, Makueni, Machakos, Nakuru and Siaya counties for making significant progress in the implementation of the initiative.

The President also singled out Vihiga, Kilifi, Nyandarua and Kakamega as counties that have made notable progress.