MPs question duplication of roles between NCIC and Directorate of Cohesion

MPs are now questioning the overlapping mandate between the National Cohesion and Integration Commission and a Directorate of Cohesion and Values domiciled in the Interior ministry.

Members of the National Assembly Departmental Committee on Administration and Internal Security said the two agencies are performing similar functions, thereby straining public resources.

The concerns emerged during scrutiny of the 2026-27 budget estimates for the State Department for National Government Coordination.

Both agencies are engaged in cohesion and peace-building functions.

Committee’s vice chairperson and Saku MP Dido Raso questioned how closely the directorate was working with NCIC, observing the two institutions appeared to be carrying out parallel responsibilities.

“I want to know how closely you are working with NCIC because largely you are working back to back,” Raso said.

Kisumu West MP Rosa Buyu accused the state department of expanding its functions beyond its core mandate by taking up responsibilities already being handled by other government agencies.

“We have a commission and then we have a similar department within the Ministry of Interior. There is too much repetition and duplication of activities, and each department handling the same activity requires government funding,” she said.

Buyu argued overlapping mandates were contributing to chronic underfunding of critical programmes, noting that resources were being spread too thinly across agencies performing similar tasks.

“If we spread ourselves too thin doing what other departments are doing, you are not going to get sufficient funding to have maximum impact,” she said.

Sotik MP Francis Sigei urged the executive to undertake a broader review of government structures to eliminate overlapping functions across ministries and state departments.

“This duplication is very expensive. Government should look at the bigger picture and streamline these areas of duplication,” he noted.

Loima MP Protus Akuja also raised concerns over apparent overlaps in funding requests related to cohesion activities in the North Rift region, saying similar programmes had already been presented before the committee by another state department earlier in the week.

“This duplication is really causing some issues,” he said.

The lawmakers also defended the importance of performance contracting in government, lamenting that the programme had suffered neglect and inadequate funding despite once being internationally recognised as a model for public sector accountability.

Sigei recalled that Kenya’s performance contracting framework had previously attracted interest from the Nigerian government and other countries seeking to replicate the system.

“This was an area where government was achieving and departments were competing to improve service delivery,” he said.

Responding to the concerns, National Government Coordination PS Ahmed Ibrahim downplayed claims of duplication, insisting that all functions undertaken by the department were clearly assigned under Executive Order Number One of 2025.

“If we respect the mandate given to each state department, there will not be duplication,” he said.

The PS said the state department was responsible for performance management across ministries, public sector reforms, coordination of the National Economic and Social Council, engagement with religious organisations and private sector coordination, among other functions.

On matters relating to national cohesion, Ibrahim maintained that coordination of the National Development Implementation Committee (NDIC) fell squarely under the Office of the Prime Cabinet Secretary and his department.

“If another agency claims they also do NDIC activities, then you only need to look at the executive order to see whether that mandate was provided for,” he said.

He admitted the department was grappling with limited funding despite handling several responsibilities that had previously been managed by standalone departments before being consolidated under the State Department for National Government Coordination.

Secretary for National Cohesion and Values in the Executive Office of the President, Josiah Musili, also defended the existence of the two institutions, saying they were established separately following the 2008 National Accord process after the post-election violence.

Musili explained that NCIC, which was established through an Act of Parliament, primarily handles hate speech, conflict management and mediation between communities.

“The directorate is specific. We help the President execute Article 132 of the constitution on national unity and nationhood,” he said.

According to Musili, the Directorate focuses on awareness campaigns, civic education, policy development and preparation of presidential reports on national unity, while NCIC deals with conflict resolution and enforcement-related functions.

“The two institutions were established with very clear mandates,” he said.

But lawmakers remained adamant, with Sigei insisting that Parliament still had a responsibility to review whether the two entities could be merged to reduce government expenditure and improve efficiency.

“We can collapse these two together and bring all those issues under one institution,” he said.