Research Papers

The study aims at providing the current state of  play on Kenya's Public Debt and the assessement of its sustainability. Debt management  options, are also suggested to enhance prudence in resource utilization to achieve economic development.

Kenya's Public Debt

This publication examines the findings contained in the financial audit reports published by the Office of the Auditor General for the three consecutive financial years from 2013-2014 to 2015-2016. Guided by the fact that financial audits are conducted at the sector level, the scope of this study highlights the findings for the Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) in the agriculture, health, education and devolution sectors. 

This paper explores the diverse viewpoints of stakeholders on devolution and examines the implications of these recent changes in the micro- and macro-workings of Kenya through a political economy analysis framework. In what follows, interview results, are grouped into four thematic areas:

1. Public service delivery and development outcomes;
2. Revenue allocation and inter-governmental relations;
3. Inclusion, public participation and role of civil society; and
4. Expectations for devolution and possible future scenarios.

Key recommendations include:

• Conducting a Kenya-wide but county-specific needs assessment to identify priorities for each region while ensuring a sense of ownership for projects and empowering citizens to increase government transparency, monitor project implementation and hold stakeholders accountable to their roles and responsibilities within devolution.
• Continue to strengthen partnership between and among counties and encourage forward-thinking leadership to foster an optimistic outlook on devolution.
• Clarify roles between the counties and national government to prevent overlaps/duplication in functions and inefficient use of revenues.
• Follow best practices in the implementation of revenue allocation and public participation mechanisms.

This report shows performance of the six largest urban areas in Kenya based on three areas, namely: service delivery, conditions for investment and governance. Performance of these urban areas is assessed using the Urban Areas Performance Index, a composite Index comprising 67 indicators (questions) that scores, on a scale of 0 (least performance) to 100 (best performance) points and ranks these urban areas. Urban areas that ensure individuals’ free choice, create favourable business conditions, use public resources efficiently and ensure transparency of their activities are ranked higher. 

The IEA’s study on public procurement and loss of public funds is part of a larger global initiative on promoting civic engagement for open contracting.  “Open Contracting” is about publishing and using open, accessible and timely information on government contracting to engage citizens and businesses in identifying and fixing problems”.