In short..this is an average performance.
Hmm. Let's see if the "good" balances the "bad"
The Good (I take it?):
Politically...Gok has largely managed to craft a cohesive united executive unlike Kibaki regime. Uhuru has reduced the political noise and forged united gov front. T
The last government was a forced marriage, after a spree of mayhem, and the tensions were inevitable. Given that, even a clod of mud would have achieved "cohesive united" simply by doing nothing---which is just about what Uhuru has done.
Economically...lots of positive vibes in energy sectors (350K new connections and 30-60% drop in electricity prices)
"Positive vibes" remind me of my pothead days, so Uhuru might be onto something there. Otherwise, Kenyans should thank the Japanese, the Americans, etc.
SGR is snaking it's way to Nairobi
We'll have to wait and see. So far the start has hardly been positive: Kenyan workers threatening to lay down their tools because they are getting screwed by their new Chinese employers.
and Galana-Kulaku (if they find water) might take off ground.
"Might" is not an achievement. And, on the contrary, it does not look like GoK is serious about any aspect of food security for Kenya.
Initial reforms in ports and trasnport corrindor to EA has seen time+cost of transport reduce significantly.
I took a quick look at the relevant numbers. What is the basis of the "reduce significantly" claim?
The 10,000 kms annuity programme might get off ground this year...if financiers buy in.
Another "might". In the realm of mere possibility, why stop at just that?
Anything might get off the ground ...
Turkana oil plans have collapsed but Oil at this price is good for us.
Nothing to do with "what has Jubilee achieved".
The 2B USD EuroBond and other initiative have seen gov appetite for domestic debts reduce and interest rate has started falling and hopefully this will spur more credit to oil the economy.
Put "hopefully" in the same basket as "might".
Reforms in VAT was long overdue...and hopefully we have some positive to counter the negatives of blanket VAT of 16% to everything.
If there is an achievement there, it belongs to the Bretton Woods types who have insisted on it. In particular, the recent agreement with the IMF (emergency-loan facilities) requires GoK to do some very tough things in that regard. It's hardly something to claim as an achievement when one is acting on orders.
Socially..free maternity seem to only new initiative i know of. Good job on Kibera and NYS reforms. Macharia equipment leasing for counties seem to have gone horribly wrong without counties buy in.
Step forward, donors. There is no need to immediately go into detailed statistics. Even
The Standard will do as a first source of reasonable information:
"
The five per cent allocation of total Government expenditure is meagre, the lowest in the region and three times lower than the 15 per cent African Union benchmark.
It is worrying that Kenya still depends largely on donor funding for health services, and steps to fill this gap are not that feasible.
The World Health Organisation (WHO) estimates Kenya to have one of the highest maternal deaths in the region. The free maternity presidential directive was a good move, but financial rebates alone are insufficient."
https://www.standardmedia.co.ke/health/article/2000146789/better-plan-needed-in-kenya-s-health-sector(The significance of the underlined is that some Kenyans brag about how much of the national budget is funded by GoK but do not realize that a lot of funding for critical services is "off-budget" because it comes from elsewhere.)
And it then goes downhill for "what has Jubilee achieved": Governance...Lukewarm support to counties. This need to change.The parastals reforms has basically stalled. Nothing has gone on that front despite Abdikadir best foot forward. Huduma centers at Posta seem is another positive. Ngilu kamba dance continues on the Land sector..started well with titledeeds before she went land grabbing fwaa..when not blocking NLC from doing their work. Uhuru generally continue to flatter where hard governance decisions need to be taken. Very little has been done in parliament to help gov craft new legislation as Duale focus on the wrong priorities...such as clearly unconstitutional laws that won't pass past Mumbi Ngugi at the high court.
Failures..insecurity and corruption..continue to dog the country. Those aren't easy to solve problems. Uhuru should at least try to solve insecurity...by allowing devolved units to help him. There is more equipment to police..esp motor vechicles thanks to leasing. No idea or leadership in Somali/KDF question. Alshabaab at least seem driven out of Nairobi..to Coast and Nep.
In short..this is an average performance. Not good enough. Not bad enough.
As I have indicated on another thread:
Kenya's history is largely the history of tribal and unmitigated grabbing by certain members of certain groups, mayhem by certain groups, the general running-down and f**king of the country by certain members of certain groups, ....
Given that, it is surely the height of cheek to somehow suggest that Kenya, as a whole, somehow benefits in the present circumstances.
The way forward for Kenya is to (a) first accept the reality, in the same manner as an alcoholic first accepts his problem, and then (b) make a sincere commitment, with accompanying efforts, to change. Otherwise, it's going to be a very costly affair when the bill finally becomes due: history tells us that some things cannot be sustained indefinitely, and I'd like to imagine that even Kenyan "leaders" know something of history (Kenya and elsewhere).
As I see it, Kenya is due for a "self-correction", of which the 2007-2008 PEV was merely a slight sample. What upright Kenyans should be focusing on is how that can be avoided; self-pleasure, pleasurable thought it might be, over SGR and electricity and whatever seems misplaced.
Topic: 2yrs on--what has Jubilee achieved. (Read 3667 times)