Governors revive plans to form economic blocs
Bomet Governor Joyce Laboso speaks during the Nation Leadership Forum at the University of Nairobi on December 7, 2017. Governors have started plans to speed up development. PHOTO | KANYIRI WAHITO | NATION MEDIA GROUP
What you need to know:
- At least 35 out of the 47 county governments are involved in such groupings, which are brought together by common interests such as marketing tourism sites.
- Ten counties in the Mt Kenya region also plan to spearhead the region’s economic transformation by leveraging on agriculture/agri-business.
County governments are reviving the idea of forming regional economic blocs to speed up development in rural areas.
Governors hope the decisions made by these partnerships will help drive growth plans and speed up economic development.
According to the Council of Governors (CoG), at least 35 out of the 47 county governments are involved in such groupings, which are brought together by common interests such as marketing agricultural produce and tourism sites, as well as enacting trade and investment laws that cut across their regions.
CoG Finance and Economic Affairs Committee Chairperson Joyce Laboso, also Bomet Governor, told the Nation that under such trade arrangements, the individual governments will come up with memoranda of understanding that will help local businesses thrive.
ECONOMY
The Lake Region Economic Bloc (LREB) launched by President Uhuru Kenyatta during the Second Annual Devolution Conference held in Kisumu on April 2015, recently announced plans to form a regional bank by October this year during a joint investment conference.
Its members are Bomet, Bungoma, Busia, Homa Bay, Kakamega, Kericho, Kisii, Kisumu, Migori, Nandi, Nyamira, Siaya, Trans Nzoia and Vihiga counties.
“A larger market increases productivity and economies of scale. Our prayer is that it does not get interfered with by politics, and the ultimate plan is to actualise the economic plan that we have for the over 14 million people that this region has,” Dr Laboso, who is the Bomet Governor and the LREB vice-chairperson, said.
ROADS
To facilitate implementation of the plan, the governors said each bloc has already set up a secretariat.
In 2016, eight counties in northern and northeastern Kenya made plans to form such a bloc to make devolution in the regions a success.
The Frontier Counties Development Council bloc brings together Lamu, Turkana, Tana River, Isiolo, Marsabit, Garissa, Mandera and Wajir, which have similar demographic and geographic features.
The bloc’s CEO, Mohamed Guleid, said the World Bank, in conjunction with the council and the national government, plans to invest almost Sh1.2 billion in infrastructural projects such as construction of the Isiolo-Mandera Road, and establishing off-grid electrical services in northern Kenya.
“These projects will be officially launched in May in Garissa County. Thematic areas for the council include peace and security, infrastructural development and capacity building for the member counties,” Mr Guleid said on the phone.
Ten counties in the Mt Kenya region also plan to spearhead the region’s economic transformation by leveraging on agriculture/agri-business, industrialisation, healthcare, tourism, water, infrastructure and ICT.
