Whose Reality Are Our Policies Based On? By Dr. Elphas Ojiambo (PhD) and Mr.

Lawrence Mwagwabi A story that appeared in the East African Standard on July, 22nd 2013 that details an encounter between Mr. Micah Cheserem, the chairperson of Revenue Allocation Commission with reality has made us reflect on the gap between policy makers and the actual reality on the ground. It was reported that Mr. Cheserem was moved to tears at Lingithya Primary School in Simisi Location, Ikutha District after what he discovered- that hundreds of the children studied under ramshackle structures made of sticks that often exposed them to harsh weather conditions. Secondly, the children in the school walked for more than 14 kilometers in search of their fundamental right to education and to cap it all there were only two government employed teachers to man the school. However, this reality is not just in Kitui but in most parts of Kenya. It is common in Turkana, Kwale, Kilifi and several counties that are considered the poorest in the country. That reality calls for one to understand that planning in Kenya must be all encompassing and should not be seen from an urban lens. Romanticizing poverty and doing nothing about it is unacceptable. There is evident disconnect between policies and reality and the need to narrow that gap nationally and at the county level is now more urgent than ever. When Cheserem, the CRA and the National Government initiate development policies to what extent do they reflect the reality on ground? Do they reflect the views of the people - their reality - or the perspectives and opinions of the policy makers - their reality for that matter? In most cases, the latter is what happens. There is a lot of need for example to educate the public on economic literacy and budget analysis if we are going to get anywhere with the 'participatory budget making' process. Experiences from India on the role that citizens can play in development are quite informative on this. Furthermore, in establishing counties, the Constitution of Kenya Chapter 11 Article 174 and 175, is very clear what the principles and objectives of the devolved county governments are. Under Article 174 (c) and (e) for instance, the objects of devolution of government are - "to give powers of self-governance to the people and enhance participation of the people in the exercise of the powers of the State and in making decisions affecting them; and, to recognize the right of communities to manage their own affairs and further their development". It is our assertion that there is little investment in developing the literacy that is requisite to achieve the objectives and principles of devolved county governments. This process requires heavy investment in educating people to understand their role in the shift that has been introduced by the constitution. It is our contention that, as county governments become more operational - the role of the civil society particularly in facilitating civic education and public participation on the budgeting process cannot not be over-emphasized. We are cognizant of the fact that certain participatory methodologies such as those implemented by ActionAid Internationals Peoples Participation to Equality (PPE) project that entailed enlightening the public on the use of Constituency Development Funds (CDF) are crucial if addressing the reality of poverty on the ground is to make sense. Further, participation must be institutionalized and

NGOs role on this is crucial. The only challenge however, is that is there are very few NGOs keen on budget matters. Citizen participation could demand for more transparent budgets - bill boards with allocations per wards and what the funds are supposed to be used for. They could in doing this link up with the CDF to ensure that there is no double funding, pilferation and wastage. To have proper participation in a public budget making process also requires capacity building and we would expect Government to use the media to educate the public on why they should participate in the budget making process. This will enable policy makers to come in touch with this reality, and it might help, to a large extent, in changing their mind set about the situation on ground. We contend that, poverty immersion programmes or Reality Checks as called in certain areas would be a good dose for the policy makers if pro-poor policies are to be developed. The authors are an economist and a political analyst. The opinions expressed herein are ours and do not reflect those of the organizations we work for.

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