Intergovernmental relations

lacking at the county level. In the health sector, for example, managing a countywide health service requires many more skills and systems than managing a single health facility. • Lacking guidance. Effective county-level management of service delivery has been hampered by the absence of sector guidance. In the absence of comprehensive sector management norms, standards, and guidelines, newly established county sector departments have been left to their own devices far more often than necessary. This has inevitably led to management failures or shortfalls.

INTERGOVERNMENTAL RELATIONS

The 2010 constitution envisages that devolution would involve cooperation between levels of government, and legislation sets up a series of intergovernmental fora to achieve this. The Constitution of Kenya, Article 189 (“Cooperation between national and county governments”), states that “Government at either level shall . . . assist, support and consult. . . the other level of government” and that “Government at each level, and different governments at the county level, shall cooperate in the performance of functions and exercise of powers.”

The Intergovernmental Relations Act 2012 provided an institutional framework for precisely this purpose. Since 2013, how have the national government and the county governments worked together in ways that ensure good service delivery? While many of the substantive issues that should be tackled through intergovernmental coordination, collaboration, and cooperation are examined in other sections of this report, this section looks at the established mechanisms for accomplishing this and the extent to which they have been functional.

Intergovernmental forums

The intergovernmental forums set out in legislation are in place. The National and County Government Coordinating Summit, the Council of Governors, and the Intergovernmental Relations Technical Committee—all prescribed by the Intergovernmental Relations Act 2012—have been established. The Intergovernmental Budget and Economic Council prescribed by the Public Finance Management Act 2012 has also been established. These forums meet regularly to undertake the functions set out for them in legislation and have established subcommittees on sector or thematic lines to further their work.

In addition, an Intergovernmental Consultative Sectoral Forum has been established for each sector as envisaged under the Intergovernmental Relations Act 2012. Some sectors have tried to use this as a basis for establishing mechanisms to facilitate coordination and cooperation (box 3.9). Development partners have also organized themselves to better support national and county government coordination—establishing, for example, the PFM Donor Working Group and the Devolution Donor Working Group.

The Council of Governors has also proven to be an active and energetic voice for the counties. It has established various technical committees along sector lines that act as caucuses for the respective County Executive Committee (CEC) members.