Kenya’s bureaucracy cries out for overhaul

Kenyans are famed for being resourceful and hardworking. Yet we face an avalanche of hurdles and obstacles when carrying out various chores and day-to-day business, especially when we have to interact with the national or county governments.

DIGITISATION

Let me give three personal examples. I had an interaction with a rather officious Nairobi Water and Sewerage Company meter reader. He told me that I had a long-outstanding bill and he was about to cut the supply. I told him he was incorrect. I went to their offices in Woodley Estate with all my payment slips. After painstakingly spending time with someone in the accounts section, we both realised that several of the payments had not been posted. It turned out I was in credit!

I recently needed to do a search on a property that I have an interest in. Unfortunately, digitisation of our land records is in its nascent stage. At Ardhi House, I filled in and submitted an application form. I was told to return in three days.

I duly returned and was told the file had not been found. I was advised to reapply and return in three days. I did so and was told the same again.

Now, I know the file exists. Some time ago, then-Lands Cabinet Secretary Charity Ngilu proudly took me through the registry and told me how she was bringing order to the filing system. I gave her my details and she pulled out the file.

The banking hall of Ardhi House is awash with distraught people being told the same thing. I persisted and, eventually, the beleaguered, but very helpful, clerk told me to wait. Five minutes later, he returned with the file, beaming.

INFORMATION

It is in the ground floor strongroom that active files are. The best part of two days was used up obtaining this very elementary, but essential, information. Many people are still waiting. I realised exactly why the Interior CS, Dr Fred Matiang’i, is so respected to the extent of being revered. We need more of his incisive skills.

Bureaucracy grinds along at a snail’s pace, to the extent of almost being self-serving. The whole operation in many of these ministries needs an overhaul supervised by people with the relevant skills, who should be external, not in-house.

The burden on many of these departments is getting greater by the day as they serve an increasing population. It is essential this is done soon.

Example number three is Nairobi City County. I went in search of a rate demand, which I had not received. As a precaution, I carried previous rate payment receipts. After much ‘toing and froing’, a helpful person went out of her way to extract the relevant accurate information.

SOLUTIONS

I left wondering how much money is not collected by NCC due to its tardy and often inaccurate rate demand system. Considering the massive indebtedness of NCC, maybe massive improvement in their systems could be one of the solutions to its financial woes.

And now, the bigger picture.

More than 60 companies on the Nairobi Securities Exchange (NSE) have experienced a downward trajectory in profits even as the overall operating environment improved.

People often refer to Rwanda as a country where the overall operating environment works much better than here. Let us look at what it did to get that way as one of the first steps to lessening the high cost of doing business here and improving the overall operating environment.

Mr Shaw is an economic and public policy analyst. [email protected]