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El Nino Funds: EACC Warns Against Embezzlement
The Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) has fired a stern warning at persons intending to embezzle public funds in the ongoing national mitigation measures aimed at managing the looming El Nino rain effects.
The commission CEO, Twalib Mbarak, in a statement to newsrooms, said they’re privy to information that there is disregard of the law in the initiation of the said measures, which might encourage fraud in the county and national governments.
“The Commission advises that all procurements and expenditures undertaken by National Government Ministries/Departments and Agencies (MDAs) and County governments in mitigation measures, in preparation for the anticipated El Nino rains should strictly comply with procurement laws, the Public Finance Management Act, and regulations,” he stated.
“Accounting officers will be held personally liable for any loss, unauthorized expenditure, or misuse of public funds.”
The government says it plans to set aside an estimated Ksh.10 billion to manage the effects of El Nino rains set to start mid-October and run until the end of December.
Much of the funds are set to be disbursed to the Arid and Semi-Arid Land (ASAL) counties which are projected to be heavily hit by the rains.
Kenya Clears 15,400 Passport Applications in Rapid Results Initiative
The Kenyan Directorate of Immigration has cleared an additional 15,400 passport applications and distributed them to regional centers for collection, as part of an ongoing Rapid Results Initiative (RRI).
Interior Cabinet Secretary Kithure Kindiki said the documents were available for collection beginning Monday, October 2. He also reported that 22,353 passports had been collected in Nairobi and regional immigration offices countrywide in the period preceding the announcement.
Of the 15,400 newly dispatched passports, the Nairobi passport office holds 7,501 passport,ts, Mombasa (1,166), Kisumu (1,602), and Nakuru (1,000). In Eldoret, 1,543 passports are ready for collection, while in Kisii 1,500 copies have been dispatched. A total of 1,088 passports are ready for collection in Embu.
Kindiki launched the RRI campaign on September 19 in a bid to clear a soaring passport backlog amid a crisis at the Immigration Department blamed on a broken printer and corruption.
“The Government will continue to align our procedures and delivery environment to ensure we bring permanent efficiency in the immigration department and sustain the war against corruption to win back public confidence,” Kindiki said in a statement at the time.
Kindiki also reported the number of uncollected passports, at the time, as 87,574 asking owners to pick them promptly. He announced plans to publish names of persons with uncollected passports every Wednesday.
Nairobi’s Nyayo House office had the highest number of uncollected passports at 36,170 while Embu held 10,409 copies. Eldoret, Kisumu, and Nakuru had 9,938, 9.515, and 8,023 copies respectively while Kisii and Mombasa had 7,971 and 5,424.
Kenya To Abolish Private Children’s Homes
The Kenyan government plans to abolish all privately owned children’s homes and orphanages within eight years, according to Labour and Social Protection Cabinet Secretary Florence Bore. The move is aimed at curbing child trafficking and abuse, and to support the rights of children to grow up in families and communities.
Bore said that only government-owned homes, which are under the Child Welfare Society of Kenya, will be allowed to operate. She noted that private homes have been used as avenues for child trafficking, and that the government wants to retain the institutions that it has under the Child Welfare Society of Kenya.
The Children’s Act, which was passed in 2022, recommends placing children without families in alternative care such as guardianship, foster care placement, and adoption. This is in line with the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, which states that children have the right to grow up in a family environment.
There are an estimated 45,000-50,000 children living in private children’s homes and orphanages in Kenya, according to the Social Protection department. The government is planning to work with these homes to transition the children to alternative care arrangements over the next eight years.
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