Day: September 17, 2024

Angola and Egypt on Monday analyzed the state of multilateral cooperation, especially within the scope of the African Union (AU), according to a press release from the Angolan Diplomatic Representation to the continental organization sent to ANGOP.

During a meeting, Angola’s permanent representative to the AU and the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA), ambassador Miguel César Domingos Bembe, and his Egyptian counterpart, Mohamed Omar Gad, presented Egypt’s candidacy for the position of vice-chairman of the African Union Commission (AUC), Hanan Morsy.

The Egyptian candidate is an economist with more than 25 years of experience in international organizations and financial institutions, such as the African Development Bank (AfDB), the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and UNECA, where he holds the role of deputy executive.

Under a deliberation of the 22nd Extraordinary Session of the Executive Council of the African Union, held o
n March 15, in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, the next vice-chairman of the AUC, to be elected in February 2025, must be proposed by the region North Africa.

The decision is based on the principle of inter-regional rotation and age proportional to gender (presentation of female and male candidates).

In addition to Egypt, Algeria and the Kingdom of Morocco have also nominated candidates for the aforementioned post.

The vice-chairman of the AU executive body is in charge of the administration and finance issues which should guarantee the right availability of the necessary resources to meet the objectives of the continental organization.

It also has the task to implement the administrative, budgetary and financial reinforcement of the AU and lead, at continental level, training and development programs for African cadres.

The current African Union Commission, the fifth, elected in 2021 is expected to complete its mandate in February 2025, when the Republic of Angola will assume, for the first time, the Presidency
of the continental organization.

Source: Angola Press News Agency

In a testament to resilience and innovation, 34 women from Kalyet village have transformed their lives and their community by embarking on a poultry project.

United by shared challenges and the need to improve their standards of living, these women have defied societal expectations and carved out a path of economic empowerment.

The initiative, launched in 2019 under the banner of the Precious Cooperative Society, began with modest resources and ambitious dreams.

With an initial investment of Sh20 per week from each member, the project started with 400 improved kienyeji chicks.

In just one year, the cooperative has seen a remarkable growth, raising over Sh40,000 and establishing an operational rearing farm, including an egg brooder.

Chairperson Ms Grace Cheboi Limo shared the group’s journey with Kenya News Agency, highlighting their progress.

‘We began with 400 chicks, and today we brood and sell an average of 1,000 to 1,500 chicks. This success has enabled us to expand our enterprise, create local job
s, and even purchase our own brooding farm.’

The women’s efforts have not gone unnoticed. In 2021, the County Government of Bomet supported them with 800 chicks through the Department of Agriculture and Cooperatives.

Dr. Kibet Sitienei, the Chief Officer of Agriculture, emphasized the commitment of both county and national governments to bolster indigenous chicken production.

‘Bomet County produces over 1.3 million trays of eggs annually, with half sold locally. Empowering local farmers is crucial, and we are working to enhance production and support farmers through subsidized vaccination services.’

Despite facing challenges such as disease outbreaks and financial constraints, the cooperative remains optimistic.

In January 2023, the group purchased 500 chicks, managing to raise 700 despite losing over 100 to disease.

Secretary Mercy Mutai noted, ‘Our members need urgent education on chick diseases, financial management, and savings. Any support in these areas would greatly benefit us.’

The cooperative
has experienced fluctuations in demand, with higher needs for mature birds and lower for chicks between October and March. Yet, the women remain committed to meeting market demands despite the high cost of feed.

The group’s story is one of determination and success, stressing the potential for Bomet County to become a leading producer of chicken and related products.

With ongoing support from local and national institutions, the Precious Cooperative Society is poised to continue its impactful journey.

Source: Kenya News Agency

The province of Lunda-Norte is hosting on Tuesday the central act of the 102nd birthday of the Founder of the Nation, António Agostinho Neto, which, among several actions taken to improve the lives of Angolans, includes the division of the old Lunda, culminating in the current Lunda-Norte and Lunda-Sul.

Dundo, the capital, is located in the municipality of Chitato, and the province is located in the northeast of the country, with a population of 972,183 inhabitants, distributed by the municipalities of Chitato, Cambulo, Caungula, Cuilo, Cuango, Capenda Camulemba, Lucapa, Lubalo, Lóvua and Xá-muteba.

Already within the perspective of reducing asymmetries, the two provinces were created on July 4, 1978, through Presidential Decree No. 86/78, of July 4.

As the province of Lunda, the population living in the northern part was forced to travel to the city of Saurimo, then capital, where the services of the Local Administration of the State were installed, to obtain official documents and academic training.

At
that time, the northern part of Lunda was considered an economic capital, due to its mining and agricultural potential, a scenario changed with the division of Lunda, by the government of Angola, three years after National Independence, provisionally establishing the capital of the newly formed province of Lunda-Norte, in Lucapa, while a new one would be built in the Mulepi region.

The early days were marked by limitations on the movement of people within the province, especially in diamond exploration areas, and from there to the country’s capital and other regions.

The project to establish the capital of Lunda-Norte in Lucapa was not materialized, due to the political instability that the country was going through.

Meanwhile, in 2000, the capital of Lunda-Norte was transferred to Chitato, urban district of Dundo due to the fact that it has better administrative structures and from this year on, the province began to expand and open up to new growth prospects in all sectors.

To lead the new province and
change the scenario, the former guerrilla João Ernesto dos Santos ‘Liberdade’ was appointed as commissioner, who worked on creating conditions for the functioning of the administrative services.

Faced with the new challenges, the government started, at the end of the 2000s, the Mussungue Centrality project, in Chitato, to improve infrastructure and promote access to decent housing.

The Mussungue Centrality, currently with 5,004 apartments, has one million and five hundred thousand square meters, with a residential area of one million and 150 thousand square meters.

It has 419 buildings, five thousand and four apartments, 153 commercial spaces and consists of T4 and T5 apartments.

Designed to house about 30 thousand people, the project, whose first phase is subdivided into seven zones, six of which are residential and one of which is residential.

The apartments already completed, housing more than 20 thousand people, represent the first phase of the project that foresees 20 thousand dwellings, to be built
in a phased manner.

In 2009, a historic moment marks the province, for the first time, and in the eastern region, a university, Lueji A’nkonde, was created, comprising the faculties of Economics, Law and Pedagogy.

The same is true of the other education subsystems, where 208 schools have been built since 2000, in a universe of 1,873 classrooms, which today house 323,000 students, provided by 5,974 teachers.

The health sector was one of those that recorded the most gains, currently having 13 hospitals, 18 health centers and 67 posts, provided by more than 800 nurses and more than 100 doctors.

The division also allowed the construction of Camaquenzo Airport, with a runway two thousand and 500 meters long, 45 wide and 15 berms, a two-storey building, with capacity to receive 300 passengers.

To ensure comfort in road, urban, inter-municipal and inter-provincial traffic, 1,161 kilometres of roads and 34 reinforced concrete bridges were built and rehabilitated.

The Luachimo dam, with a production capacity of
34 megawatts of electricity, the rehabilitation of the Dundo Museum, which stands out in the conservation of various cultural collections, documentation, historical and specific research on the Lunda Tchokwe people, are, among others, the fruits of the strategic vision of the National Hero, Agostinho Neto, to divide Lunda into two provinces.

The province of Lunda Norte, which hosts the central act of the 102nd birthday of the Founder of the Nation, is located in the northeast of the country with a population of 972,183 inhabitants, distributed in the municipalities of Chitato (political and economic capital), Cambulo, Caungula, Cuilo, Cuango, Capenda Camulemba, Lucapa, Lubalo, Lóvua and Xá-muteba.

Source: Angola Press News Agency

The Government is seeking an investment of 3.4 Billion US dollars (Sh440 billion) spread over 10 years (from 2022 to 2032) from donors in order to make the livestock feed sector secure and resilient in times of calamities.

The head of Animal Feeds and Nutrition Services at the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock Development, Dr. Stanley Mutua said Ministry carried out a research in arid areas in 2018 -19 and in non-arid areas in 2019 to 2022 and the report showed that the country is facing a 60 percent feed shortage and even out of what is being produced, 46 percent goes to waste.

‘Kenya requires 55 million metric tonnes of dry matter animal feed annually but only produces 40 per cent leaving a huge supply gap of 33 million metric tonnes, which unfortunately has to be imported and this leaves this critical sector in a very precarious position,’ Dr. Mutua said.

He said it’s in this regard that the Ministry has come up with a National Feed Policy after it also emerged that Kenya`s livestock sector was fac
ing a 26 per cent malnutrition which has caused stunting, thus affecting productivity.

Dr. Mutua was speaking in Naivasha on Monday during a five-day workshop attended by six African countries piloting the Resilient African Feed and Fodder Systems (RAFFS) program hosted by the African Union-Inter African Bureau for Animal Resources (AU-IBAR) to look at the issues facing African countries feed inventory and balance for Africa, establish the status of the feed sector and agree on common Africa approach on the sector.

Dr. Mutua said from the report of the aforementioned research which was done in two phases, the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock Development has come up with various Interventions which include; promotion and priotizing 10 feed value chain to produce required feed in the country.

He noted that the government’s national feed strategy will help to address animal feeds and water shortages for livestock and feed quality by looking at energy sources such as maize and sorghum and protein-rich sou
rces such as soya, sunflower and cotton seed and black soldier fly for animal protein.

To reduce losses, the animal health expert said the Government has initiated measures to address production, storage and conservation of the feed by investing in storage infrastructure where feed storage hubs will be constructed in every county with a capacity of 100,000 bales of fodder each weighing 15 kilograms. This translates to will help produce 4.3 billion bales of hay every year through an investment of 3.4 Billion dollars (Sh480 billion) spread over 10 years and help bridge the deficit in feed production.

‘Through the report, we have come up with a feed delivery model in order to stem malnutrition which now stands at 26 per cent and have also come up with a model to reduce cost by producing feed in bulk and a feed emergency program,’ Mutua stated.

We also intend to reduce post-harvest losses by linking the end user and producer and we have come up with Feed Investment Plan (2023-2024) which we have used to pitch
for funding and have already used Sh. 164 US million dollars on it and we expect to use a further 267 US million dollars on the same this financial year.

During the five-day meeting, Kenya will be reporting on how they have utilized data from research and explain a national feed strategy for 10years for sustainable livestock production.

Mr. David Maina from the AU-IBAR- Resilient African Feed and Fodder Systems (RAFFS) program said the two organizations were working with farmers to create inventory that will show the status of livestock feed in the concerned countries for the purposes of planning.

This, he said will help the sector to bounce back and support economies of these countries, especially after a disaster such as drought.

‘We need know where we are and strategize so that the countries can have a robust livestock sector and this can be done by keeping the sector resilient to avoid losses when disasters strike,’ Maina said.

He said for now the livestock feed sector was not robust yet as, data has
been missing, making it difficult to act when disasters strike and prepare for the growing demand to feed the growing population

‘Each country should be able to evaluate themselves in order to prepare for any eventuality,’ He said.

Prof. Isabelle Baltenweck, an economist at the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) in Nairobi said the problems facing the livestock sector in Africa is diseases, poor genetics and lack of enough and quality feeds and countries should be able to be feed secure to avoid losing animals when disters occur.

‘We are embracing data policy where we rae bale to use technology to assess which feeds are availability in each area or country and ew are collaborating with them on methods on assessing feed availabilities in varies areas, what support is required in order to increase availability,’ She said.

The RAFFS Project is a three-year Emergency/ Short Term Response Project, jointly for AU-IBAR funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, and the African Union Commis
sion. It is mandated to lead and support livestock development across the continent. It is a collaborative effort to address the adverse effects of recent global crises, the triple C’s-COVID-19, climate change shocks, and the conflict between Russia and Ukraine-on African feed and fodder systems.

The project is also designed to stimulate a greater understanding of the impact of the recent and ongoing crises-COVID-19, climate change (drought and flooding), and the Russia-Ukraine conflict-on the feed and fodder sector.

An estimated 8.9 million livestock, 2,5 million of them in Kenya, were lost in the greater horn of Africa alone during the recent drought that ravaged the region for nearly two years, thus causing a loss to the affected countries totaling about half a billion US dollars (Sh. 70 billion).

Cameroon, Kenya, Nigeria, Somalia, Uganda, and Zimbabwe are the six African Union Member States where the project is being piloted since their livestock has a high contribution to livelihoods, incomes, and the
economy, and where coordinated action and substantive investment can be quickly mobilized to respond to the shortages.

According to the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), Kenya’s livestock sector accounted for 4.4 per cent of the country’s Gross Domestic Product equivalent of Sh. 3.4 billion as of 2017 statistics.

As of 2017 data, the country’s animal population comprised 44.6 million poultry, 18.8 million cattle, 26.7 million goats, 18.9 million sheep, 3.2 million camels, 1.9 million donkeys, and 0.5 million pigs.

According to FAO, Kenya’s beef production stands at 588,000 metric tonnes and cow milk production at 4.1 billion litres per year, and the demand for livestock products is projected to increase exponentially driven by population growth by the year 2050.

The study titled Future of Livestock in Kenya 2019 shows that by the year 2050, meat and cow milk consumption will increase by 1.4 and 6.6 million metric tonnes annually respectively.

Source: Kenya News Agency

Help Age International, a global non-profit organisation, that works o to improve lives older people around the World has launched research in four Kenyan counties aimed at establishing challenges facing elderly persons and recommending solutions.

This follows an outcry across the Country to the effect that elderly persons have been neglected, with many facing violence from, among others, their close relatives, while others were suffering indignity due to lack of finances.

The international nongovernmental organization held a sensitization workshop with relevant stakeholder organizations at the Catholic Institute in Malindi town, where it was agreed that the research would enable state and non-state actors to find a lasting solution to the woes bedeviling the elderly.

Ms. Lydia Makena Micheni from HelpAge International, Kenya Chapter, said the research would focus on establishing barriers and facilitators to access to social protection, income and health for older persons.

She said the research would be
conducted in Siaya, Kilifi, Kisii and Embu counties between September 2024 and December 2024.

She said similar research focusing on social protection, health and wellbeing of older persons was conducted in Nairobi where it was established that the greatest challenge facing elder persons was lack of income, security and health.

‘It is from that research that gave us the impetus to conduct similar research in the rural areas. We want to understand how older persons not getting social protection funds are coping with life and the barriers to social protection among older persons,’ she said.

Ms. Micheni said the menace of killing older persons on suspicion that they are practicing witchcraft was being fueled by lack of awareness about aging and that the research would come up with solutions to issues of violence and abuse towards older persons.

Mr. Joseph Karisa Mwarandu, the Secretary General of the Malindi District Cultural Association (MADCA), said older persons in Kilifi County had continued to suffer ind
ignity and violence because leaders had given the matter a deaf ear.

‘The problem has been exacerbated by the lack of concern from leaders about the plight of older persons, and therefore we urge the government and political and community leaders to come together and tackle this menace,’ he said.

He welcomed the research, saying for there to be a solution to the plight of older persons, thorough research should be conducted.

Mr. Mwarandu, whose organization is hosting a number of older persons who fled hostilities in their homes due to witchcraft claims, said political and religious leaders should come out and fight for the plight of the elderly.

‘In Kilifi County, together with the fact that older persons do not get good services, they are also being killed on allegations of witchcraft. This is a problem that has brought them great indignity as human beings.

Ms. Helder Lameck from the Malindi Gender-Based Violence (GBV) Network called for the establishment of special desks for elderly persons and at hos
pitals and police stations so that older person’s issues can be adequately addressed.

Source: Kenya News Agency

Meru County has kicked off a three-day participatory Scenario Planning Worksop which is majorly meant to guide farmers during the upcoming October-December rainy season.

The workshop is organised by the Kenya Meteorological Department with the sponsorship of SNV, a not-for-profit international development organisation founded in the Netherlands nearly 50 years ago, through Climate Resilient Agribusiness for Tomorrow (CRAFT) project.

Speaking during the official opening of the workshop, Meru County Agriculture, livestock development and fisheries Executive Dr Faith Mwende said the workshop and general engagement of various stakeholders during the forum comes at the right time considering that the long rains were around the corner.

She said the majority of farmers in the County and Kenya at large lack proper information on climate issues and as a result end up not carrying out the right agricultural practices.

‘It is due to lack of enough and proper information about climatic issues that farmers are not aw
are of the type of crops to plant during a given season depending on the amount of rain.’

‘Consequently, we end up having crop failure or even post-harvest losses, all of which lead to food insecurity in the country,’ Dr Mwende said.

She exuded confidence that the workshop will enable stakeholders to get the requisite information that will be eventually shared with farmers in order to make informed decisions on their farming practices.

County Commissioner Jacob Ouma said the workshop was vital considering that weather focus influences various activities in day-to-day lives and as a result the stakeholders should take the forum seriously considering the rainy season was approaching.

‘There are great expectations from the forum, especially from the end result of various discussions based on different weather forecast methods which will culminate to good advisories to the residents,’ said Mr Ouma.

He said the workshop’s outcome will enable farmers to know which crops to grow in a given time as opposed to ma
ize and beans as is a norm in the county.

Meteorological Application Services Deputy Director Ms Mary Githinji said the meteorological department’s mandate is usually to produce weather focus which is later used to carry out participatory scenario planning in specific counties.

She said the counties, once they receive the focus, are supposed to tailor-make it in order to make it useful for people in that area.

‘Participatory Scenario Planning can be used to predict the proper onset date for the season and get to know what, when and how to grow a given crop,’ said Ms Githinji.

Source: Kenya News Agency

Tatu City in collaboration with development partners have launched the Association of Special Economic Zones (AZES) with the objective of increasing employment opportunities in the country especially among the youth and ‘Gen-Z’.

Speaking at the event, Principal Secretary (PS) for Investment Hassan Abubakar pointed out that Kenya is known to be number 1 in producing the best human capital in Africa.

Abubakar disclosed that ASEZ endeavors to curb unemployment, foster development and boost investment in the country.

He added that this is an investment attraction tool for private investments of domestic and foreign parties.

The PS said the Ministry has made reforms in the SEZ such as removal of taxes for local integrations and elimination of withholding taxes for investors who have been financed through foreign money.

‘The ASEZ vision is to build world-class special zones that drive economic transformation, investment and industrial excellence,’ stated Abubakar.

Further, he stressed that ASEZ aims to empow
er SEZs such as Tatu City, through advocacy, strategic partnerships, capacity building and promoting innovation, sustainability and economic growth.

However, the PS acknowledged that the Association faces certain challenges and therefore the need for government’s intervention.

The Founding Chairman of the DL Group of Companies Dr David Langat emphasised that the Government should address issues on infrastructure as this is one of the challenges ASEZ is facing in the country.

Langat called upon the government to help in areas of concern in order to create a conducive environment for investors to thrive as this will encourage development in the country.

‘There are 38 Special Economic Zones in Kenya, 12 of which are eligible for operation,’ revealed Langat.

This, according to the Chairman, has encouraged the creation of good business environment despite scarcity in resources for investors.

‘There are numerous benefits arising from the ASEZ and Kenyans are being called to sharpen their skills so as to not m
iss out on the employment opportunities from this,’ he observed.

Source: Kenya News Agency

The Judiciary has implemented a new system to manage all financial transactions aimed at improving efficiency in processing and managing the payment of court fees, deposits, refunds and administrative functions.

In a press statement from the Chief Registrar of the Judiciary, the transition to this new platform, which is fully integrated with the e-filing and case management systems, is now complete and the refund process which had been suspended has resumed.

With the new platform in place, payment receipts will now be accessible via SMS acknowledgement in addition to the e-filing and CTS platforms.

Further, depositors will be required to update their bank details through a link sent to their mobile phone when a refund is being processed.

‘We are working diligently to ensure that all outstanding refunds, forfeitures, and utilization are completed as swiftly as possible,’ read the statement.

Meanwhile, the judiciary has apologized to all the stakeholders for the inconvenience caused and urged them to cont
act the department through the email address: ictdirectorate@court.go.ke or automationdeputyregistrar@court.go.ke for enquiries.

Source: Kenya News Agency

The Awendo- based South Nyanza (Sony) Sugar Company is set for a major maintenance operation aimed at restoring the plant’s ability to mill at full capacity.

The maintenance which is scheduled to start in mid-October to late November this year will require at least Sh.400 million for maintenance operations to boost the factory’s ability to mill cane beyond 1,500 tonnes per day.

According to the Company’s Managing Director (MD), Martin Dima, they have already started to acquire the necessary tools and spares both locally and abroad.

The plant has a capacity to crush up to 3,000 tonnes if the fatigued machine is properly maintained or replaced.

The 1979 installed machine has been working for over 45 years exposing it to wear and tear for years into fatigued.

Since Dima was appointed three months ago, there has been an improvement in the operation of the machine allowing it to crush between 1,700 to 2,200 tonnes of cane per day as compared to the previous 800 tonnes.

The Sh865 million worth semi-autonomou
s company has not had a substantive Managing Director for close to eight years, and the appointment of Dima three months ago has breathed life into the factory putting it on the right path of restoring to its lost glory.

The frequent breakdown of the plant has however reduced its effectiveness in maximizing its full potential of crashing at least 3,000 tonnes of cane per day.

The old machines have also reduced the sugar production, which under normal circumstances is one tonne of sugar per 10 tonnes of cane. This frequent breakdowns have however led to the plant crushing only 12 tonnes of cane to produce one tonne of sugar.

MD Dima has also overseen the transformation the mill’s ability to produce 1,500 tonnes of sugar weekly from the previous 700 tonnes of bagged sugar, doubling the company’s final output.

However, despite these challenges, Dima acknowledges that the company has restored farmers’ confidence by boosting operational frameworks through the efforts that been effectively put in place.

The
resolved payment delays to farmers and prompt payment to 1,500 direct employees and other 3,000 indirectly employed staff has greatly elevated the morale of farmers and the workforce.

The MD disclosed that the company has been able to reduce the five-month delay period of paying farmers to within a month which has seen an increase in cane deliveries to the factory.

‘When I was appointed a substantive Managing Director, I found a lapse of five months of non-payment to farmers. Currently, we are paying farmers that delivered their canes this August’, disclosed Dima.

Dima explains that going forward they want to reduce the payment window to within a week to further improve the economic status of the cane farmers who play a crucial role in ensuring the factory operates optimally

The revival of the Company will also require increased acreage of cane to fully utilise the company’s capacity to crash 3,000 tonnes of cane per day.

The factory has 2,400 hectares of nuclear under cane with an additional 6,000 hecta
res from contracted farmers. Dima emphasizes the need to increase cane acreage to continuously provide raw materials to the company.

Currently, Sony Sugar has more than 25,000 contracted farmers from the counties of Narok, Homabay, Kisii and Migori.

In the recent past, the majority of cane farmers in South Nyanza had to diversity their cane farming to other crops after years of disappointments over delayed payments.

While others decided to sell their cane to private millers like the Sukari Industries in Homabay and the Mara Sugar from Narok, a good number have reverted to growing other crops such maize, sweet potatoes and bamboo to get income, after uprooting sugarcane from their plots.

Dima says that the reduction of cane acreage has involuntarily made them partner with Kenya Agricultural and Livestock Research Organization (Kalro) and the Sugar Research Institute to develop early maturity cane, that is resistant to weeds and which contains high sucrose to enhance the production of sugar produced by the
company.

The MD has also praised the sugar ban by the Ministry of Agriculture and Agriculture and Food Authority (AFA) saying that the sugar prices will go up to maximize good returns both to the company and the cane farmers.

This month, the government through the Ministry of Agriculture banned the importation of sugar into the country from countries outside the East African Community (EAC) and Comesa.

Under the new management and guidance of Dima, the company has also been able to review and audit cases against the company by farmers and service providers.

Dima noted that the Company has been able to review and resolve cases that stood at 3,500 downwards to 1,700.

Dima stresses that some of the cases audited were non-existent while others were forgery. He said that it was improper for the company to pay for services that were not consumed by the organisation.

Sony Sugar has also become the first state miller corporation to be approved on its Human resources policy tools by the State Cooperation Advisor
y Committee. The human resource tools will help the miller improve, cure human resource challenges as well as motivate a spirited team to occupy permanent positions and promotions in the company.

Source: Kenya News Agency

Nakuru County Government has assured property owners that the on-going public participation on the new Draft Property Valuation roll was not aimed at increasing land rates but at updating the County valuation land register.

Valuation rolls are records of the value of land within a county, which may be used to determine the rates that property owners have to pay to the county government. This is provided in Valuation for Rating Act CAP 266.

Physical Planning Chief Officer Ms Stella Mwaura said the public participation fora which were being conducted across the 11 sub-counties would go on until September 18th this year and were being conducted to educate the public as per the law.

Ms Mwaura emphasized that the Draft Valuation Roll aimed at updating the valuation land register and does not prescribe any rates that land owners would pay to the county government but rather provided values for land parcels within the devolved unit.

The Chief Officer who spoke today during consultative meeting with Sub-Counties
and Ward Administrators drawn from Nakuru Town West and East Sub Counties to address concerns arising from the ongoing exercise, said that civic education remained key in all county government programmes so that residents are educated and informed on the government activities as set out in law.

Ms Mwaura told property owners who found that information collected was either incorrect or missing some details have a right to object as per the Nakuru County Valuation and Rating Act of 2023.

She explained that the information captured by Draft Valuation Roll included the plot number of property, name(s) of owners or parties affiliated to the property, area of land in hectares, value of land, location of the property, current use and postal address.

The defunct municipalities used to review the valuation roll after every 10 years, but the county government, in its ‘Valuation Bill 2017’, reduced the period to five years.

Public Service Management Chief Officer Mr Charles Koech assured property owners in the count
y that the objections would be reviewed and determined by an Independent Valuation Tribunal.

Mr Koech said a Draft Valuation Roll would be deemed complete after the following steps are complied with: Collection of data from various marketplaces, preliminary visits conducted, public participation conducted to get public input, and compiling of the data that leads to a draft.

‘When valuing land, we have to consider the location, that is, its proximity to the nearest town or urban center, social amenities like schools, hospitals and size of the land,’ added the Public Service Management Chief Officer.

Koech said that valuation could not be done on forests, power stations, and cemeteries adding that it was only based on the piece of land without including the structures therein while a card shows temporary ownership.

Land rates are a major source of revenue for county governments, which enable them to provide essential services and infrastructure to the residents.

Source: Kenya News Agency