World Bank approves $30 million for ICT applications to support Nairobi and other counties to enhance accountability in revenue management
WASHINGTON, March 26, 2014—County governments will benefit from transformational use of innovative technologies to improve their efficiency and effectiveness in public service delivery.
This initiative will be supported by a $30 million additional financing approved today by the World Bank’s Board of Executive Directors for the Kenya Transparency and Communications Infrastructure Project (KTCIP). It will help the counties to develop master plans for use of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) to increase their accountability in the management of their resources.
“The innovative use of ICT will reduce revenue leakages and address other gaps in the revenue collection and management systems of the devolved county governments,” says Diarietou Gaye, World Bank Country Director for Kenya. “These applications will integrate the counties to the national government’s Integrated Financial Management Information System and link them to a unified communications system that will enable them to respond to the demand for better services by their citizens.”
The new program will enable the national government to work closely with county governments to improve their services through ICT reforms and also enhance transparency and good governance in the management of county governments’ affairs. It will help all the counties to develop road maps for development and deployment of ICT applications.
Funded by the Bank’s International Development Association (IDA)*, the program will expand open data initiatives to the counties by scaling up the activities being implemented under the KTCIP. It will boost the total Bank funding for the entire project to $199.5 million.
“The information on the money collected and used by the counties will become an important component of the data needed to revitalize Kenya’s Open Data Initiative in Nairobi and the other counties,” says Arleen Cannata Seed, the Task Team Leader of the KTCIP project. “The ultimate beneficiaries of this initiative will be Kenyan citizens, who will hold their county governments more accountable in the collection and use of county taxes and fees.”
In Nairobi and two other counties, it will facilitate the implementation of some aspects of the plans, including rolling out of the Integrated County Management tool to enhance accountability in their revenue management and related functions.
KTCIP is part of the Regional Communications Infrastructure Project supporting Kenya, Burundi and Madagascar. Its implementation since 2007 has enabled Kenya to lower prices of international capacity and extend the geographical reach of broadband networks. It has also contributed to improved government efficiency and transparency through e-government applications.
The project has enabled Kenya to achieve significant technological advances including digital inclusion, content development and digitization of government records. It has also expanded eGovernment shared services, contributing to increased efficiency, reduced duplication and cost savings. Moreover, it has supported Kenya to establish a Business Process Outsourcing and IT-enabled services sector.
* The World Bank’s International Development Association (IDA), established in 1960, helps the world’s poorest countries by providing zero-interest loans and grants for projects and programs that boost economic growth, reduce poverty, and improve poor people’s lives. IDA is one of the largest sources of assistance for the world’s 82 poorest countries, 40 of which are in Africa. Resources from IDA bring positive change for 2.5 billion people living on less than $2 a day. Since 1960, IDA has supported development work in 108 countries. Annual commitments have increased steadily and averaged about $16 billion over the last three years, with about 50 percent of commitments going to Africa.
