APRM • SECOND COUNTRY REVIEW REPORT OF THE REPUBLIC OF KENYA
Best practice: Huduma Centre improving public service delivery
Huduma Kenya is an initiative by the Government of Kenya that aims to transform
Public Service Delivery by providing access to citizens of the various Public Services
and information from One Stop Shop public service centres called “Huduma Centres”
and through integrated technology platforms.
As of 2016, there are 11 Huduma Centres across the major cities of Kenya, three of
which are in the capital Nairobi. The government plans to establish a Huduma centre
in every county. The programme includes also online e-Huduma web portal to provide
integrated services offered by various government ministries, departments and
agencies and a unified and integrated Huduma payment gateway to facilitate ease of
payment for government services. Others are introduction of m-Huduma platform to
offer government services to citizens from their mobile phones and a Huduma call
centre to provide customer service using a single dialing prefix.
Services delivered at Huduma centres include: Renewal of Drivers licenses Status
check, duplicate National Identity Card, NHIF Registration and Claims, assessment
and Payment of Stamp Duty – Lands, Search and Registration of Business Names,
Registration of Welfare Groups, Student Loan Application and Repayment Services;
Reporting Corruption, EACC Clearance Certificate; Status of Pension Claims; Kenya
Police Abstract, Public Complaints through the Commission on Administrative Justice
(Ombudsman).
During CRM visits to the counties, stakeholders expressed their satisfaction of Huduma
centres in the way they have eased access to government services and brought them
closer to the people. The use of technology platforms has reduced personal contact and
minimized the opportunity to offer bribes and above all improved revenue collection.
164.
Generally speaking, there is a good relationship between the leadership and public services
of the national and county governments at the level of planning. The collaboration is
rooted in the 2010 Constitution, although evidence points to the need to fine-tune the
instruments and frameworks for that relationship, including enacting further legislation in
this regard. Relatedly, the CRM learned that this collaboration extends to tax matters, and
that the national Kenya Revenue Authority has stepped in on invitation to assist County
Governments in operational and capacity building functions related to tax. Similarly, the
National Assembly has stepped in to assist County Government Assembly member and
their staff in capacity building.
165.
Jurisdictional matters still do arise, however, between national and county government
public services either because of lack of constitutional clarity in jurisdictional partitioning
or due to matters arising from operations of specific policy guidelines. For instance, it is
not yet clear whether there is a consistent position on the implementation of health under
devolution, but there is agreement that health has suffered in specific areas under the
devolution regime.
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