Raila Odinga Proposes National Rewards to Top-Performing Counties: "We Must Continuously Push"
- Raila Odinga outlined proposed reforms aimed at strengthening governance and promoting efficiency across all levels of devolved administration
- He emphasised fair recognition for outstanding contributions within the devolved governments and the county governors
- The politician highlighted the importance of having transparent systems across all the counties
Nancy Odindo, a TUKO.co.ke journalist, has over four years of experience covering Kenyan politics, news, and features for digital and print media.
Homa Bay: ODM leader Raila Odinga has called for a reward system that would see the national government offer incentives to counties delivering exemplary services.
Source: Facebook
Themed 'For the People, For Prosperity: Devolution as a Catalyst for Equity, Inclusion and Social Justice,' the forum aimed to assess achievements, challenges, and future reforms in devolution.
How can national government identify leading counties?
Speaking on Thursday, August 14, during the two-day 2025 Devolution Conference—where he was the chief guest—Raila said counties excelling in areas such as poverty reduction, youth unemployment, and environmental conservation should be recognised and rewarded.
“I propose that there be incentive arrangements between the national and county governments through which the national government will reward those counties that deliver the best services. We need transparent and independent performance reporting at the counties to give the public access to data they can use to evaluate and compare counties,” he said.
He noted that such data would empower citizens to know where it is easier to start a business, access healthcare, engage in farming, and make informed socio-economic choices.
Should governors be entitled to a pension?
Raila, a long-standing opposition leader, also proposed that governors who serve two terms should automatically qualify for a pension—similar to the arrangement for Members of Parliament.
Source: Facebook
“In Parliament, we did an amendment so that any MP who serves two terms is automatically entitled to a pension. Why can we not do the same thing for the governors? A governor who has served two terms needs to be entitled automatically to a pension. This is a recommendation that should come from Homa Bay, and MPs should seize this matter and move an amendment in Parliament,” he added.
Underscoring the role of devolution in Kenya’s development, Raila said: “Our counties will either be engines of innovation or bottlenecks of frustration. We must choose boldly. This is not a call for war between the two levels of government, but a push to stop the national government from micromanaging counties and instead fully devolve power and resources.”
He emphasised that devolving this role would bring oversight closer to communities, improve responsiveness to local needs, and enhance overall efficiency in the education sector.
Raila, alongside other leaders, played a key role in championing devolution during the constitutional review process.
The conference—officially opened on Wednesday, August 13, by President William Ruto—brought together members of the national executive, legislature, Judiciary, county governments, and development partners to review progress in Kenya’s devolved system.
Should education be devolved?
Meanwhile, Raila urged the decentralisation of education management up to the secondary school level, arguing that the current system is inefficient.
He said inspection of school facilities across the country should be the responsibility of county governors, not the Cabinet secretary for Education.
According to him, requiring the Cabinet secretary to travel to distant regions, such as Marsabit or Garissa, to inspect primary or secondary school structures is impractical and wastes valuable resources.
Source: TUKO.co.ke
