Strengthening Institutions of Governance and Service Delivery to Entrench Transparency and Accountability

What is the Strengthening Institutions of Governance and Service Delivery to Entrench Transparency and Accountability Program?

Strengthening Institutions of Governance and Service Delivery to Entrench Transparency and Accountability is a program that advances the implementation of anti-corruption reforms enumerated in the new Constitution in Kenya, including laws and policies that will reduce corruption throughout the political, electoral, and governance systems in the country. The program increases participation of the various stakeholders in the anti-corruption agenda in Kenya by promoting networking among like-minded organizations and state institutions, policy advocacy, and research and documentation.

Project Duration and Budget:

October 2011 – October 2013
$643,558

Who implements the program?

Transparency International – Kenya

Where does the program work?

National (focus on Nairobi, Coast, North Rift, and Western)

What does the Strengthening Institutions of Governance and Service Delivery to Entrench Transparency and Accountability Program do?

The Program conducts research, including institutional systems and practices audits, and systematic monitoring of the performance of key institutions. Central to the program’s research work is annual East African Bribery Index, which documents citizens’ experiences with corruption. Research findings are widely disseminated, through stakeholder organizations, the mass media, and social media.

The program supports coalitions of organizations with knowledge and skills training workshops, targeted advocacy forums, information exchange, technical debate forums, public advocacy and public awareness raising forums. Through structured, issue-based networking and collaboration with other actors, the program facilitates advocacy for social and legal change.
Regional coalitions for good governance translate the program integrity studies in the various public service sectors into popular tools and mechanisms for citizen use in monitoring and reporting on public service delivery at the lowest levels. The program facilitates increased citizen involvement in community level integrity monitoring. This improves the responsiveness of public policy processes and public service delivery institutions through citizen demand for integrity in the water, education, health and sanitation sectors.

How is the Program making a difference?

Kenyans went to on March 4, 2013 with confidence that the electoral process would be fair and transparent. The program conducted an audit of the implementation of Independent Review of Elections Commission Report, also known as the Kriegler Commission Report. The audit found that most of the Commission’s recommendations have been implemented. These include constitutional, legal and policy interventions that have been effected to actualize the Kriegler recommendations.

Formation of a more effective policy and legal framework has promoted accountability and transparency resulting a number of corruption cases that have been investigated, and public resources recovered. For example, recent engagement from TI with the courts helped to clarify that Members of Parliament are constitutionally required to pay taxes and cannot exempt themselves from this responsibility.

Increased interaction with various networks has enabled leadership and integrity to become a primary agenda in the governance sector. Through networking and partnerships there is increased participation of various organizations in integrity issues and anti-corruption efforts.

What key challenges does program face?

Following the adoption of a new Constitution in 2010 and the March 2013 general elections, Kenya now has 47 new county level governments that will need close monitoring and assistance in setting up transparency and accountability mechanisms.

The biggest challenge of the program is the resistance of lawmakers to transparency and accountability in general. In the end, the laws are better than they would be without TI, but not as good as they would be without resistant lawmakers.

The Strengthening Institutions of Governance and Service Delivery to Entrench Transparency and Accountability Program in Action

A survey by Transparency International Kenya reveals that 58% of Kenyans think corruption levels have either remained the same or increased in the last decade. 14.5 percent of these respondents believe the levels have increased a lot across that period.
According to the report titled, Stuck on a Treadmill? A national opinion poll to evaluate progress on the anti corruption agenda in the last decade, another 85.7% of respondents believe the President had requisite powers to deal with those suspected of involvement in the scandals but he did not. This perception implies less than optimal confidence in the institution of the presidency to render critical support to anti-corruption issues.
The survey was conducted through 1,788 face to face interviews among randomly selected Kenyans aged 18 years, and was carried out between January 17, 2013 and February 8, 2013.
The survey shows that efforts in the anti-corruption crusade have either not been comprehensive and participatory enough to win public confidence or have been diluted by a perceived lack of government commitment or the grand corruption scandals that have remained unresolved alongside reform efforts. The continued adverse performance of basic services sectors like water, education and security on petty bribery as captured by the Kenya Bribery Index and other surveys may have also contributed to this perception.

For more information:

John Smith-Sreen, Director, Office of Democracy, Rights and Governance
USAID/Kenya
Tel: +254 20 862 2000
E-mail: jsmith-sreen@usaid.gov

Dan Spealman, Technical Advisor for Civil Society and Local Governance
USAID/Kenya
Tel: +254 20 862 2000
E-mail: dspealman@usaid.gov

Samuel Kimeu
Executive Director
Transparency International-Kenya
Tel: 0722-296589; 0733-834659
E-mail: skimeu@tikienya.org