NAIROBI, Kenya, Aug 29 – Governance, public sector and civil society leaders have called for stronger and more accountable public institutions to help rebuild trust between Kenyans and the government.
Speaking at a governance roundtable in Nairobi, Mzalendo Trust Executive Director Caroline Gaita said public trust depends on institutions that protect citizens, uphold the law and respond to their needs.
“Trust is the bedrock of democracy, the foundation of which must be rooted in the belief that political institutions and leaders act in the best interest of the public,” Gaita said.
“Government must do the job for which it exists: protecting them and promoting their common welfare.”
State Department for Foreign Affairs Principal Secretary Korir Sing’Oei said Kenya must examine why trust in public institutions remains low despite the safeguards created under the 2010 Constitution.
“We created institutions of oversight and governance designed to ensure that we can trust. Yet, as we celebrate the 16th anniversary of the Constitution, we must ask ourselves why, despite a constitutional architecture created to enable trust, we find ourselves in a place where there is perhaps less trust.”
The meeting also discussed transparency in public finances, independent oversight bodies, youth participation in governance, corruption, service delivery and the shrinking civic space.
Strathmore University Vice Chancellor Vincent Ogutu said trust is built when citizens and institutions meet their responsibilities and work towards a shared future.
The roundtable was co-convened by Mzalendo Trust, the Open Government Partnership Kenya and the State Department for Foreign Affairs ahead of the Trust Summit scheduled for October.
