2 | NEWSFOCUS November 06, 2018 www.mygov.go.ke Team to formulate regional economic blocs law launched Inter-Agency Committee named to formulate policy and legal framework to guide formation on Regional Economic Blocs BY WANGARI NDIRANGU KNA-NAIROBI T he government has established an InterAgency Committee that will come up with a policy and legal framework to guide formation on Regional Economic Blocs (REB). The formation and operationalisation of the REBs that are currently in place are not guided by any policy framework or regulation thus compromising their effectiveness. Speaking during the launch of the committee, Devolution and ASAL Cabinet Secretary Eugene Wamalwa said the committee will by next year ensure that the REB are anchored in law. “This team will now proceed and ensure the policy is developed, ensure the legal frameworks is in place by January 31, 2019,” the CS said. He explained that the country has already formed six REBs namely Lake Region Economic Bloc (LREB), North Rift Economic Bloc (NREB), Jumuia ya Kaunti za Pwani Bloc, Mount Kenya and Aberdares Bloc, The Frontier Counties Development Council Bloc (FCDC) and South Eastern Kenya Economic Bloc (SEKEB). Wamalwa said the LREB has the highest number of counties and brings together over 14 million Kenyans together, NREB has 8 counties, Jumuia ya County from Coast has six counties, Mt Kenya and Aberdares has 10 counties, FCDC has seven counties while SEKEB has three counties. “We still have three more counties namely Kajiado , Narok and Nairobi that have These counties have already developed the necessary legal framework for them to engage and has attracted Sh100bn from World Bank - Eugene Wamalwa not joined any bloc and we want to encourage them to join one in order to reap the benefits and enhance partnership of counties as investment magnets and also so that we have all the 47 counties joining the bloc,” Wamalwa said. The CS noted that standing alone as a county normally attracts less investment but those coming together will enjoy economies of scale in terms of projects across the counties as it will be easier to even mobilise resources. Wamalwa lauded LREB whose 14 counties are coming together and contributing each Sh200 million to open up and establish of a regional commercial bank. He also named the Pwani bloc who will be holding a major conference on blue economy at the end of this month saying through building the potential they have partnered with European Union who have committed Sh2.9 billion to the counties to host the conference. He further congratulated the FCDC bloc from Frontier area of Garissa, Wajir, Mandera, Isiolo, Marsabi, Tana River and Lamu who are way ahead of the other five blocs in terms of development. “These counties have already developed the necessary legal framework for them Kwale signs partnership deal with French envoy France had so far supported various projects in the county including rehabilitation of the Marare/ Mombasa water pipeline BY JAMES MUCHAI KNA-KWALE K wale County government has entered into a partnership with France, which will see the region’s residents benefit from various projects in the tourism, fisheries and water sectors. Governor Salim Mvurya hosted France Ambassador to Kenya Ms. Aline Kuster at his office where the two discussed several areas of cooperation. Mr. Mvurya said the government of France had so far supported various projects in the county including rehabilitation of the Marare/Mombasa water pipeline. He added that water treatment works at the proposed multibillion Mwache Multipurpose Dam in Kinango subcounty, will also be funded by France through its development agency, Agency Francaise de Development (AFD). The Governor lauded the government of France for its continued support in form of loans and grants towards priority areas of development in the county. “We have warm relationship with the government of France and we are glad the partnership has been rewarding in terms of implementation of projects in various sectors in the county,” he said. Mr. Mvurya said the Mwache project will boost domestic water supply and sanitation besides improving food security through its irrigation component. The project is expected to address the perennial water shortage in the Coastal region mainly in Kwale and Mombasa counties. According to the Governor, France will also fund other Amount each of the 14 counties in the LREB will contribute to establish a regional commercial bank. to engage and has attracted Sh100 billion from World Bank to work on flagships projects such as water and infrastructure,” he said. The CS confirmed that the law allows counties to work together but necessary legal and policy framework have to be in place 200m Cabinet Secretary for Devolution and ASAL Eugene Wamalwa (centre) with Devolution PS Charles Sunkuli (on his immediate right) and Simeon ole Kirgotty, Secretary Devolution and Inter-Governmental Relations (to his left) pose for a group photo with the Ministry’s Inter-Agency Committee members. to allow counties to work on joint projects “Apart from policy and legal framework we will amend several laws including Public Private Partnership (PPP) to enable counties to embrace PPP investments in their counties. He acknowledged that this has been a challenge and that very few Private Partnerships have been successful. “As we develop the regional bloc we need to ensure PPP framework is strengthened to make it easier for counties to attract private investments,” he said. The CS urged the technical committee that involves Council of Governors, AG office, Law Review Commission and representatives from other government bodies to hit the road running since they only have a short time to ensure that the policy is ready to be presented to cabinet and then to parliament by end of January 2019. In order for the process to be successful, Wamlawa however said counties should adopt effective public participation approaches that genuinely engage citizens as it is a constitutional requirement. President Uhuru Kenyatta during the inaugural investment conference the Lake Region Economic Bloc in Bomet town supported the formation of county regional blocs to tackle common problems. The President said the government will support the performance of regional blocs and that regional development authorities will be streamlined to fit into the new economic dynamics of the country while supporting regional economic blocs. projects, including investing in the blue economy. He said a delegation from France will visit the county to discuss the modalities of implementing the projects after the first global Blue Economy Conference that will be held in Nairobi from November 26-28, this year. “Immediately after the conference, we will host a delegation from France to discuss the possibilities of improving the exploitation of marine resources that will benefit local residents,” he said. Mr. Mvurya said the partnership will also facilitate the introduction of French language courses at the Technical University of Mombasa (TUM), Kwale Campus. Ms. Kuster said France was committed to supporting the county’s priority development areas. “We are ready and happy to partner with the county on various initiatives to better the lives of the local people,” she said.
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