Nyandarua has been named the best performing county in the recent World Bank assessment.
Governor Francis Kimemia received the trophy during the launch of the Kenya Devolution Support Programme at Laico Regency Hotel, Nairobi, on Thursday.
He said: “This is proof that Nyandarua can lead. Some people belittled us thinking we shall forever be confined at the bottom. But now Nyandarua is shining, there is God. "
Kimemia also received Sh254 million for being the best performer. The money is part of Sh4 billion being released to 22 counties set to benefit under the programme.
“This trophy is not just a glass. It is worth Sh254 million, it is our victory, the people of Nyandarua," he said.
The county chief attributed his victory to good leadership, prudent financial management, professional and disciplined workforce among other attributes.
He prides himself of being a student of the former President Mwai Kibaki, during whose tenure development, especially in infrastructure, was achieved. He said he learned from Kibaki that not shouting, but discipline and focus achieve results.
Among great contributors to Kimemia's success are civil servants employed during the term of former governor Daniel Waithaka. Upon assumption of office in 2017, Kimemia assured the county he would not sack anyone as "that is not his nature" but will ensure all work together for the good of Nyandarua.
This trick saw all the departments continue working uninterrupted with unrivalled institutional memory to bank on.
“I am still working with the chief officers who served the former regime. The officers who were in office when Nyandarua used to be ranked 47 out of 47 counties. All of us are pulling in the same direction. That shows you government workers are not bad. All you need is to provide leadership, it does not matter who employed them," he said.
Kimemia is also working with all the other county staff he found in the county, he said.
He said they agreed to run the county as an investment entity where everybody focused on productivity and value for money in every undertaking.
He said staff were also united with the residents through the second County Annual Development Plan.
Unfair criteria
Last year, Nyandarua was ranked second in the KDSP ranking and received Sh283 million in grants for development.
This year despite topping the list, the amount declined with Sh29 million. This, Kimemia said, is because of the improvement of the programme from 13 counties last year to 22 counties this year, among other World Bank considerations.
Makueni county received the largest share of Sh296.6 million, Kiambu (Sh289.5 million), Kakamega (Sh262.5 million) and Mombasa (Sh259million).
Kajiado is placed bottom in the list with Sh66million.
Kimemia said the mode applied while sharing cash among the winning counties is unfair.
He said the top performer should also be the top in monetary gains.
Nyandarua ranks eighth in contribution to national GDP and also gives water to Nairobi and many other counties in the Rift Valley. Such factors, he said, should be considered.
“We shall appeal to the World Bank to give us more money. This must be reviewed so when you are position one in terms of all the elements put in place, then it should consistently tally with the resources that go into our hands, not getting lest when you are number one. It does not make sense."
The people of Nyandarua know on Thursday he went to receive the cheque hence he will be explaining to them why he got less, he said.
Kimemia’s sentiments were backed by Devolution and ASAL Cabinet Secretary Eugene Wamalwa. On Thursday, he said it was unfair that Nyandarua received less cash despite being the top performer this year.
“We want to appreciate Kimemia for being the top performer. The only issue I am having with the World Bank is that we would need a review because though Nyandarua was number one in terms of performance, there are a lot of complicated criteria they apply," Wamalwa said.
He said the governors need to engage the World Bank to understand the criteria used and the parameters applied to see if there is room for review.
Wamalwa said the country is happy with Governor Kimemia and his team because what they are doing is transformative.
Edited by R.Wamochie
