Biennial Government-to-Government consultations Meeting.

The Principal Secretary, State Department for Devolution, Michael Loikenu Lenasalon, today hosted Yannic Kiewitt, Country Officer for Kenya at the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development, for the biennial Government-to-Government consultations.

The forum, which aims to align bilateral development cooperation priorities, brought together representatives from the German Embassy, the Council of County Governors (COG), the Kwale County Government, and senior officials from the State Department for Devolution.

In his remarks, PS Lenasalon highlighted the State Department’s commitment to strengthening civic education and public participation as key avenues for gathering citizen feedback across counties. He emphasized the importance of performance management, noting that it is essential for enhancing accountability within devolved units.

He underscored that meaningful progress in this area requires comprehensive needs assessments and dedicated leadership to ensure that systems function effectively.

Mr. Kiewitt commended the significant progress made in Kenya’s devolution journey since the promulgation of the 2010 Constitution. He reaffirmed Germany’s support for the Good Governance Programme, jointly implemented by the State Department and GIZ,German International Cooperation (GIZ), which focuses on enhancing county-level performance management, capacity development, and citizen engagement.

The Kwale County Secretary, Sylvia Chidodo noted that devolution is yielding positive results, citing improvements such as the reduction of the county’s poverty index. However, she identified human resource capacity as a major challenge hindering further progress. This sentiment was echoed by Ken Oluoch from the Council of Governors, who highlighted advancements in key areas such as access to water and healthcare as clear indicators of devolution’s success.

The State Department for Devolution was also represented by the Director for County Capacity Building and Technical Assistance, Kennedy Nyambati, the Head of Policy and Research, Maurice Ogola, the Head of Devolution Collaboration and Partnerships, Dr. Samuel Nyaga and his deputy, John Mokomoni.