University of Nairobi vice-chancellor Stephen Kiama has challenged the government to borrow a leaf from China and allow scholars to drive development and governance.
Kiama said the Chinese ruling party managed to transform the country to one of the most powerful economies in the world with the help of scholars.
"If we put politics aside and allow scholars to develop governance and development policies in the Kenyan context then we will spiral to be one of the leading giants in the continent," Kiama said on Wednesday.
He spoke during a seminar at the University of Nairobi to mark the Communist Party of China's centenary.
The CPC was founded in 1921 on the principles of communism and took over the government in 1949, marking 72 years of governance.
Since then, it has remained the sole ruling party. This is in great contrast to the Kenyan case where every election cycle has seen new political outfits emerge to form the government.
Kiama faulted the political scene in the country for ignoring scholarly input in governance issues and relying on cut-and-paste models from Western countries.
"If you look at the Chinese transformation journey they have eradicated extreme poverty and created enough jobs for their people by following advice from the universities," Kiama said.
Ambassador Mutinda Mutisa, Kenya’s high commissioner to Tanzania, said political parties in the country can rise to the occasion by borrowing a leaf from the CPC.
Mutisa said the CPC had created long-term political stability needed to plan and implement policies to underpin sustainable development.
“Over the last 72 years, the party has defended China’s sovereignty, maintained security and political stability and united the country’s 56 ethnic nationalities.
"In turn, this has created a peaceful environment for rapid economic growth and China’s steady rise to become the richest and fastest developing country on earth,” Mutisa said.
He said the biggest lessons a political party can learn from the CPC are the adoption of policies to eradicate extreme poverty in the country and policies to stem corruption.
He noted that China had managed to lift over 850 million people out of poverty to become the first country in the world to achieve the 2015 UN Millennium Development Goals of halving the extreme poverty rates.
“The World Bank hailed this monumental achievement as one of the great stories in human history,” Mutisa said.
Peter Kagwanja, director at the African Research Policy think tank, argued that long-term leadership and political stability is the mother of development.
Kagwanja praised the party's ability to ensure stability in China and extensive campaigns to wipe out corruption in high-ranking positions.
Kagwanja said that CPC's policies are intellectual-oriented and reformist.
This, he argued, had enabled CPC to preside over China’s rapid economic growth into the ‘world factory’ and global power with the second-largest economy.
"The party has stood the test of time to emerge as the sole remaining communist ruler after the collapse of the USSR in 1989," Kagwanja said.
Chinese ambassador to Kenya Zhou Pingjian said the party now embarks on a journey to realise the modernisation of China.
The plan is divided in two, one that expires in 2035 and second that will end in 2049. "The aim is to develop a modern socialist nation by 2049," he said.
"CPC's way of doing things is putting the bigger picture in mind as they look at the future," Pingjian said.
