1. On behalf of the Council of Governors, I take this opportunity to express my pleasure to appreciate each one of you who has joined us for the ground breaking ceremony of G47 Ugatuzi Towers and the launch of County Covid-19 Socio-economic Reengineering and Recovery Strategies. Sincere gratitude to H.E. the President for availing himself to grace this occasion. 

 

2. Since devolution, it has been our desire to enhance coordination of County Governments activities under one roof. Today marks the beginning of the actualization to fulfil this desire by ground breaking a magnificent Devolution Headquarters, named the G47 Ugatuzi Towers.  The Towers will house all the Devolution stakeholders in one space thereby promoting harmonious consultations and facilitating smooth flow of information to all players. Further, this will immensely strengthen service provision to Citizens while deepening devolution. We laud the County Pensions Funds (CPF) for agreeing to partner with us in this unique investment that will benefit the County Governments among other stakeholders. 

 

3. I appeal to all partners in the devolution space to work together with the Council of Governors, with a view of strengthening the objectives of devolution. We remain committed to strengthening cohesion between National and County Government in order to enhance service delivery to the citizens. 

Ladies and Gentlemen

2. Since the announcement of the first case of COVID-19 in March 2020, County Governments have been at the frontline with respect to pandemic response. The Council of Governors has coordinated sub-national and intergovernmental efforts towards the fight against COVID-19.  It is on this premise that the Council of Governors commissioned the development of County Covid-19 Socio Economic Re-engineering and Recovery Strategy, which will support County Governments to bounce back from the impacts of Covid-19 and build a resilient and sustainable economy. 

 

3. Today, we are pleased to present a milestone that the county governments have been engaged in since the Covid 19 pandemic hit our nation. The launch of the County Covid-19 Socio Economic Reengineering and Recovery Strategies represent the culmination of six months of intensive work by the Council of Governors, County Governments and KIPPRA, overseen by a committed Covid-19 Re-engineering and Recovery Committee.

 

Distinguished Guests, 

4. A vital part of the individual County strategies is the action plans which have estimated a budgetary allocation amounting to Ksh 132 Billion to be set aside by the Counties for purposes of recovery. This is a clear demonstration of the commitment by counties to partner with national government in the journey of rebuilding our economy.

 

5. The Council of Governors would like the County specific strategies to be living documents that are effectively implemented and to complement the County Integrated Development Plans (CIDPs) among other planning tools. 

 

6. I am confident that County Re-engineering and Recovery strategies will lead to more productive, competitive and innovative Counties that will propel the achievements of medium and long-term goals.