APRM • SECOND COUNTRY REVIEW REPORT OF THE REPUBLIC OF KENYA 314. Various methods are used in disseminating information, including: Sectoral and Ministerial Bulletins; Dissemination Seminars; Conferences and Workshops; and press releases. At the local level, open forums are held where various groups (the public, public barazas) are informed of the government’s programmes; and they are required to provide inputs regarding their feelings on specific or general projects and programmes. At the county government level, similar open forums are held at which the public is informed of the policies and programmes the government is implementing. Likewise, the national government has established a Public Communication Secretary Office that informs, clarifies and responds to various information gaps and misrepresentations concerning government policy. 315. Another forum being used for public participation is the internet. The CSAR notes that the use of the Internet service to deliver policy messages by the government is now widespread. Every government ministry has a website where policy issues are posted for use by the public and other interested stakeholders. At the Sub-county level, Subcounty Information documentation centres (SIDCs) have been established to disseminate information on the government’s policies. However, effective use of SIDCs faces a number of challenges which have undermined their effectiveness as a tool for public participation. These primarily relate to a lack of human and financial resources to operate effectively in providing the required service. Added to this is the operationalization of Official Secrets Act (CAP 187) that provides for preservation of state secrets, which has limited the scope of public access to information and may need to be reviewed to make it more specific on information classification. 316. In terms of legislation, section 207 of the PFM Act, 2012 requires the government to develop regulations to prescribe further guidelines for stakeholder participation in public financial management. This legislation now provides a single legal framework for PFM in the new system of government for all levels of government. This is a first for Kenya. The operationalization of the PF Act 2012 has also brought about some critical changes in budget execution whereby an increase in one appropriation must be offset by a reduction in another, and any savings from reduction in expenditure will go to reduce the deficit. Another notable change brought out by the PFM Act 2012 is the adoption of programme based budgeting to performance targets. The Act also envisages a greater role for parliament in scrutinizing the budget and a change in the budget calendar to allow it to do so. 317. Another legislation is the Constitution of Kenya 2010. This has brought in the role of parliament in monitoring the implementation of the budget by providing expressly that parliament can allow the Cabinet Secretary in charge of the National Treasury to withhold funds from any agency reported to have misappropriated resources. The legislative oversight in Kenya is no longer restricted to budget approval and the review of audit findings. It now includes continuous oversight. | 151 |