IPOA launches Sh17bn 5-year plan to strengthen police accountability

The Independent Police Oversight Authority (IPOA) has launched a Sh17 billion five-year strategic plan aimed at strengthening police accountability.

However, with only 21 per cent of the required funding and operations limited to nine regions out of more than 3,000 police facilities, IPOA admits that the plan’s success will depend heavily on adequate resources.

The launch comes at a time of rising public demand for justice over cases of police brutality.

This is IPOA’s third strategic plan. It sets out to enhance accountability among police officers, rebuild public trust, and boost confidence in both IPOA and the National Police Service (NPS).

Currently, the authority has just 289 staff against an approved workforce of 1,377, barely 21 per cent of the number required to oversee more than 130,000 police officers nationwide.

These limited personnel are spread across nine regional offices, far below the 3,000 police facilities in 1,450 wards that IPOA is mandated to cover.

Chairman Isaak Hassan said the authority has embedded strategies to address persistent issues such as disregard for human rights standards, violations of the rule of law, and erosion of national values and principles, factors that have undermined public trust in both the police and IPOA.

“The Authority, during this strategic period, will focus on five Key Results Areas: enhanced police accountability; improved public trust and confidence in IPOA and NPS; stronger strategic partnerships and engagement; strengthened institutional effectiveness and efficiency; and improved data and knowledge management,” said Hassan.

He added that the strategic objectives provide a roadmap for achieving policing standards as enshrined in the Constitution. Implementation, resource mobilisation, and monitoring and evaluation frameworks, he noted, will guide the achievement of set targets.

The authority requires Sh13.2 billion but has so far been allocated Sh7.4 billion, leaving a funding gap of Sh5.8 billion, 44 per cent of the budget.

“This calls for sound resource mobilisation strategies to bridge the gap,” Hassan said.