Kenya

For the past two decades, experiments in decentralization and federalization have been developing in Africa, Asia, and the formerly communist states of Eastern Europe.... Show More + Many of the powers previously in the hands of the central government or its de-concentrated structures have been transferred to lower government layers. Additionally, local governments are gradually emerging as development actors. Whatever the reasons for decentralization, the transfer of new functions to local governments can be substantive, at least in intent. This publication offers a new policy-oriented implementation model, applied systematically in parallel in Burkina Faso, Ghana, Kenya, and Senegal. The book studies the individual countries and compares similar issues based on the same blueprint. The analysis is not intended to assess whether the chosen decentralization model is the right one, which does not exist. Rather, it examines decentralization achievements in specific national settings and compares those achievements with the announced objectives. The divergences revealed enable decision makers to choose appropriate directions for country reform. This method does not transpose textbook solutions to the states. The reference framework offers an analytical approach contextualized to each country that integrates not only economic arguments, but also sociopolitical ones. The authors propose an analytical guide founded on political and institutional economy. They analyze decentralized policies that help stakeholders to identify the issues, point out stumbling blocks, and ensure coherent decisions on decentralization. Show Less -

This tenth edition of Doing Business sheds light on how easy or difficult it is for a local entrepreneur to open and run a small to medium-size business when complying... Show More + with relevant regulations. It measures and tracks changes in regulations affecting eleven areas in the life cycle of a business: starting a business, dealing with construction permits, getting electricity, registering property, getting credit, protecting investors, paying taxes, trading across borders, enforcing contracts, resolving insolvency and employing workers. Doing Business presents quantitative indicators on business regulations and the protection of property rights that can be compared across 185 economies, from Afghanistan to Zimbabwe, over time. The indicators are used to analyze economic outcomes and identify what reforms have worked, where and why. This economy profile presents the Doing Business indicators for Kenya. To allow useful comparison, it also provides data for other selected economies (comparator economies) for each indicator. The data in this report are current as of June 1, 2012 (except for the paying taxes indicators, which cover the period January - December 2011). Show Less -

The mobile revolution has transformed the lives of Kenyans, providing not just communications but also basic financial access in the form of phone-based money transfer... Show More + and storage, led by the M-PESA system introduced in 2007. Currently, 93 percent of Kenyans are mobile phone users and 73 percent are mobile money customers. Additionally, 23 percent use mobile money at least once a day. New potential for mobile money has come with the rise of interest-earning bank-integrated mobile savings systems, beginning with the launch of the M-KESHO system in March 2010. The authors examine the mobile savings phenomenon, using data collected in a special survey in late 2010. They show that the usage of bank-integrated mobile savings systems like M-KESHO remains limited and largely restricted to better-off Kenyans. However, what the authors term "basic mobile savings" -- the use of simple mobile money systems as a repository for funds -- is widespread, including among those who are otherwise unlikely to have any savings. Holding other characteristics constant, those who are registered for M-PESA are 32 percent more likely to report having some savings. Show Less -

Kenya is entering a decisive year. Three main developments will make 2012 extraordinary. First, Kenya will hold national elections for the first time since the traumatic... Show More + post-election violence of 2007-08, which ended Kenya's high growth momentum abruptly. Second, Kenya's economy will need to navigate through a severe economic storm, which could well become a hurricane, especially if Europe enters into a recession. Third, the country will implement its most ambitious governance reforms ever, namely the devolution of responsibility to forty-seven new counties. Kenya's policy makers will need to display tremendous skill and steadfast leadership in order to balance the need for fiscal prudence, with ensuring that resource flows to new local governments are sufficient to meet their needs. High expectations of the promise of devolution need to be met by equally high quality planning and execution of its delivery. Kenya will enter 2012 from a weaker-than expected economic position. Kenya's economy is navigating rough economic waters, where existing structural weaknesses have been compounded by short-term shocks. The most visible sign of Kenya's economic challenge is the depreciating shilling, which reached an all time low against the US Dollar in October 2011. The elements behind this situation are high international food and fuel prices, the drought compounded by conflict in the horn of Africa, the Euro crisis, widening fiscal and current account deficits, and major inefficiencies in Kenya's agriculture sector. The recent developments are also undermining one of Kenya's main strengths over the last decade: the credibility and predictability of its macroeconomic policies. Show Less -

In Kenya, community run small-scale water systems play a critical role in supplying and improving access to water services in peri-urban and rural areas. This is largely... Show More + because municipally-owned water services providers currently supply only 25 per cent of the country's population and 39 per cent of the population within their service areas. Historically, under a centralized institutional structure, a large number of communities were tasked with managing and recovering the operating costs of small piped water supply systems installed by government. The importance of these community providers has been recognized in recent reforms of the sector. These provide for a legal and regulatory framework for community based organizations to engage in water service provision outside major towns and cities. However, a host of problems complicate efforts to support these community organizations to become reliable service providers, including their limited management capacity, low operating revenues and lack of access to finance. Efforts to license and regulate the operations of community water projects have been hampered by the slow implementation of policies aimed at decentralizing water service delivery to communities in areas not covered by municipal water services providers. In spite of considerable liquidity within the Kenyan financial sector, domestic banks do not typically finance investments in water infrastructure because of the long term nature of infrastructure finance and the perceived lack of creditworthiness of rural and peri-urban small scale water providers. Efforts to license and regulate the operations of community water projects (CWPs) have been hampered by the slow implementation of policies aimed at decentralizing water service delivery to communities in areas not covered by municipal water services providers. With the considerable public financial resources available in the water sector, the size of the market for a loan linked product is likely to be limited over the medium term. However, public funds are not sufficient to build the infrastructure required to effectively meet the demand for water services: hence the increasing focus on cost recovery tariffs and the considerable initiatives underway to access supplementary financial resources from the private sector. Show Less -

Kenya will need to navigate through another economic storm in 2011. This will reduce growth to a projected 4.8 percent, which is still substantially higher than the... Show More + average of the last decade. The decade started on a bullish note for Kenya. In 2010, growth was higher than expected at 5.6 percent. If growth accelerated to 6 percent, Kenya could reach Middle Income Country status by 2019. Kenya is at the threshold of a major demographic transition and is urbanizing rapidly. Each year, Kenya will continue to grow by more than one million people, who will live longer, be better educated, and increasingly live in cities. This social and economic transformation needs to be managed well to catalyze its development impact. This report recommends that in order for Kenya to continue to prosper in 2011 it will need to maintain macroeconomic stability, and contain inflation and further increases in debt. This entails tighter monetary policies and a reduction of the fiscal deficit. If there is a need for additional expenditures in response to external shocks, reallocations seem to be the most appropriate response. Kenya can leverage its auspicious location and its role as a hub for the larger East African region by upgrading its infrastructure, creating a good business environment, and continuing with region integration. This would also position Kenya globally and generate additional exports in services and manufacturing. The report concludes that the best way to start making Kenya more competitive is to strengthen its coastal hub and to modernize the port of Mombasa. Show Less -

The Executive Directors approved a five-year credit to the Republic of Kenya in the amount of SDR 65 million (US $100 million equivalent) for a Kenya Informal Settlements... Show More + Improvement Project (KISIP) on the payment terms and conditions set out in the President's Memorandum. Directors expressed support for the project, noted its consistency with the 2010-2013 Country Assistance Strategy (CAS), and welcomed the strong collaboration with development partners in designing and financing the project. They agreed with the objectives of the KISIP to improve the living conditions of informal settlements in selected municipalities in Kenya, and welcomed the focus of the project on strengthening security of tenure for current residents and on upgrading infrastructure through a participatory process. Directors noted that the project is crucial not only for enhancing competitiveness of cities and overall growth, but for directly addressing poverty and promoting more inclusive service delivery. They also welcomed the project's emphasis on improving governance at the local and settlement levels, and stressed the need for the Bank Group to support implementation by providing capacity building support, technical assistance, and knowledge transfer. Show Less -

This brief includes the following headings: sector track record; key clients; case study; use of investment; client objective; client challenge; International Finance... Show More + Corporation (IFC) value; industry results; and economic results. Show Less -

Kenya may be at a 'tipping point', the theme of the third Kenya economic update which has a special focus on the transformative impact of information and communication... Show More + technology (ICT) and mobile money. Over the last decade, ICT has outperformed all others sectors growing at an average of 20 percent per year. The benefits of ICT are starting to be felt in other sectors, and have contributed to the conditions for Kenya to reach this tipping point. Kenya has entered the new decade with renewed and stronger than expected growth. The passing of the new constitution, continued strong macroeconomic policies, and a favorable regional environment have created a new positive economic momentum. Kenya may again be positioned to experience high growth. Over the last three decades Kenya has experienced only two short episodes when economic growth exceeded five percent and was sustained for at least three consecutive years: 1986-88, and 2004-2007. Is Kenya again at the verge of experiencing another growth spurt? Will it last longer and go deeper than the previous two episodes? Show Less -

This smart lesson explains how donor funds have been used to leverage domestic market finance and equity for investment in small piped water infrastructure in the peri-urban... Show More + and rural areas of Kenya. Given the immense pressure on government and donor resources to achieve the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), this approach shows that leveraging donor funds not only increases the volume of investments financed but improves the sustainability of these investments by linking debt service to system functionality. Show Less -