Week of October 30

CHANGES IN THE MINORITY LEADERSHIP AT THE NATIONAL ASSEMBLY

JUBILEE’S SOUL: The fight for the soul of retired President Uhuru Kenyatta’s Jubilee Party appears far from over despite Speaker Moses Wetang’ula’s ruling replacing her as Deputy Minority Whip. Sabina was replaced with Embakasi West MP Mark Mwenje. The party has called for a meeting to belatedly celebrate the retired President’s birthday, and loyalists could use the opportunity to make political pronouncements on the matter. 

REPRIEVE for Sabina was given in the form of an allowance to act as the interim whip for the 21 out of 28 members of the Jubilee Party in the House after they applied to be recognised as a parliamentary party. 

COMMITTEE MATTERS 

EDUCATION matters are likely to dominate in the National Assembly this week as the Departmental Committee is scheduled to hold several meetings. The committee is scheduled to meet the Cabinet Secretary for Education to discuss capitation, the distribution of textbooks, digital learning and scholarships. 

The committee will also meet with the Kenya National Union of Teachers to discuss the deployment of classroom teachers to headship positions without providing salary and allowance. 

RECESS. The National Assembly is on a short recess until November 7. The Senate has resumed sittings. Departmental committees will however continue meeting to deliberate the Supplementary Budget. The Defence, Intelligence and Foreign Relations Committee is scheduled to interrogate 15 nominees to ambassadorial positions. 

SENATE BUSINESS. On resumption, the Senate will debate on the County Boundaries Bill, 2023 among other agendas. The County Boundaries Bill, 2023 seeks to streamline the process of delimitation of county boundaries, solving county boundary disputes and handling of alteration of county boundaries among other things. 

KENYA TO HOST AFDB ANNUAL MEETINGS

UNDERSTANDING. Kenya and the African Development Bank Group have signed a memorandum that would see Nairobi host the AfDB 2024 Annual Meetings.  

CRUCIAL MEETINGS. The 59th Annual Meeting of the African Development Bank and the 50th meeting of the African Development Fund— the African Development Bank Group’s concessional arm for low-income countries—will take place in the Kenyan capital, Nairobi, from the 27th to 31st May 2024. 

AGENDA. The Annual Meetings, the Group’s topmost statutory event, provide the stage for its boards of governors and management to review the organization’s activities over the previous year and adopt resolutions on key decisions to advance Africa’s development agenda. The 2024 meetings will also provide an opportunity for leaders to discuss progress issues on Africa’s socio-economic development. 

KENYAN LEADERSHIP. Kenya’s Cabinet Secretary for Treasury and National Planning, Prof Njuguna Ndung’u, is the current chair of the Bank Group’s Board of Governors, signed the memorandum on behalf of his country. He reiterated Kenya’s full commitment and dedication in supporting the Bank’s vision and strategy, and specifically in the preparation of the 2024 Annual Meetings. 

STRONG TIES. Kenya’s portfolio in the bank has increased from $2.88 billion in 2018 to $3.95 billion by September 2023, representing a 37.2 percent growth over the last five years. Kenya, a founding member of the Bank Group, has benefitted from the Bank’s investments since 1964. As of 30 September 2023, the Bank’s ongoing portfolio in the country stood around $3.98 billion. It comprises 51 operations; 37 sovereign and 14 non-sovereign, spread across transport, water and sanitation, energy, finance, agriculture, social, and multi-sector/governance. 

TALKING OF WHICH

THE KING: King Charles III and Queen Camilla are in the country this week for an official visit. Charles is set to embark on his inaugural visit to Kenya, marking both his first official trip to the country and his first visit to a Commonwealth nation since ascending to the throne in May 2023. This holds historical significance as Kenya is the very nation where his mother, Queen Elizabeth II, was declared queen, ascending to the throne in February 1952.

HISTORICAL TIES. During his visit, the King will also acknowledge the “painful aspects” of his nation’s shared history with Kenya, which celebrates the 60th anniversary of its independence from the U.K. on 12th December 2023. Despite the colonial past, the two countries have enjoyed a close relationship since independence.

WATCH OUT FOR

STATE OF THE NATION: President Willliam Ruto will deliver the 2023 State of the Nation Address to Parliament on Thursday 9th November 2023. The session will be a joint sitting of Parliament commencing at 2:30pm. The Head of State can use the event to make a strong pronouncement or dwell on the ambitions and achievements of his administration. Retired President Uhuru Kenyatta memorably used his address in 2015 to name and shame corruption suspects and purge his Cabinet of members who were under investigation for economic crimes. 

MOVING UP

Mr. Philip Thigo, a Kenyan Technology and Public Policy Expert has been appointed as one of the 38 distinguished experts to the UN High-Level Advisory Board on Artificial Intelligence. Mr. Thigo currently serves as the Executive Director for Africa at the Thunderbird School for Global Management – Arizona State University and is an Advisor and technical lead on Open Government for the Government of Kenya. He has been recognized as the “World’s 100 Most Influential People in Digital Government” in 2018 and as one of Africa’s “Top #100 Most Influential African Leaders in Technology and Telecommunications” in 2023. Mr. Thigo was recently appointed by the Cabinet Secretary for ICT and Digital Economy, Mr. Eluid Owalo to help reform the ICT, broadcast, and telecommunication sector in line with technological advancements.