Persons with disabilities are 1 per cent of workforce

Only a mere one per cent of people with disabilities are in government, which is way below the threshold set by the Constitution.

This translates to some 1,082 people out of a workforce of 106,724 in government ministries, departments and agencies, a government report says.

According to the document by the Public Service Commission, only 31 people with disabilities were employed out of 2,211 new appointments in the last financial year.

“Comparatively, this proportion does not meet the threshold of five per cent representation as required by the Constitution,” the report dubbed Evaluation Report on Public Service Compliance with Values and Principles in Articles 10 and 232 of the Constitution says.

However, the government made significant gains in ensuring that gender representation in the Civil Service meets the constitutional threshold.

Unlike in 2013 when the number of females in the service did not meet the threshold, last year the percentage rose to 36 per cent.

Public Service Commission Chairperson Margaret Kobia said the two-thirds requirement had been met.

EITHER GENDER

“However, this does not mean that we shall now not employ women. PSC will continue to employ individuals of either gender based on competencies and experience. What I can assure is that the two thirds will always be adhered to,” Prof Kobia said.

In terms of compliance and declaration of income, assets and liabilities, 7,932 officers working in state corporations and other government agencies, and 6,334 in ministries and departments did not comply.

In terms of age, the report indicates that 56 per cent of the public servants are below 45 years. Those in the 35-39 age bracket are the highest at 25 per cent.

Those over 60 years and those below 24 years account to one per cent of the total workforce.

“Thus, notwithstanding the frequent freezes on employment in the wider Public Service, the age profile of the workforce would still leave room for effective succession management plans across most segments of the service,” the report says.

The findings also indicate that the number of employees who were trained on ethics was low and would not be sufficient to keep the debate on ethics alive in the service.

“The findings obtained regarding the levels of training on ethics indicate that MDAs on their own trained 9,415 of the total 106,724 officers,” the report read. Only 32 of the entire 249 MDAs had carried out corruption perception index rating.