REMARKS BY DR. EDWARD SAMBILI, CBS, PERMANENT SECRETARY, MINISTRY OF STATE FOR PLANNING, NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT AND VISION 2030 DURING THE INDUCTION WORKSHOP FOR DISTRICT FIELD OPERATION ASSISTANTS (DFOAS), HELD FROM 10TH TO 16TH JANUARY, 2010, AT KENYA COOPERATIVE COLLEGE IN KAREN

Workshop Participants,
Distinguished Guests,
Ladies and Gentlemen

It gives me great pleasure to preside over this opening session of the induction workshop for District Field Office Assistants.  I wish to take this opportunity to congratulate all of you for having being appointed to this post. I would also like to recognise and appreciate the efforts that have gone to the successful recruitment of DFOAs as well as preparation of this workshop.

The DFOAs have been recruited as part of the Ministry team that will implement Community Empowerment and Institutional Support Project (CEISP) in 107 districts funded by the African Development Bank. The project has two main components namely; (1) capacity building which involves developing capacity of communities and other stakeholders to participate in addressing their development challenges; and (2) Strengthening Decentralized Development, Planning and Finance which will  involve providing support to facilitate the development of harmonized development planning system and construction of District  Information and Documentation Centres (DIDCs).

The objective of this workshop is to enhance understanding of the District Field Operation Assistants on the project operation, the African Development Bank (ADB) procedures to be followed, project implementation modalities, existing government regulations and procedures and finally your role in effective project implementation. I urge you all to take time to understand in detail the project goal, objective and target groups as well as your responsibilities in its execution.

Ladies and Gentlemen:  It is now about five months since the loan agreement between the Government and the African Development Bank became effective. The main activities that have been accomplished so far are the successfully recruitment of the DFOAs and initiation of procurement of civil works which is about to be advertised. Other activities will follow as soon as you settle in your stations. Therefore the implementation of the project is on course.

The role of DFOA includes but is not limited to preparing the annual work-plan and budget in liaison with the District Development Officer, initiating and coordinating community training, preparing quarterly reports, monitoring the implementation of project activities and collaborating with other development partners in your respective districts during the implementation of project. You are expected to play your rightful role at the district level after this induction workshop.

In undertaking these duties, you are expected to work closely with the DDO through whom you will be reporting and submitting quarterly reports to the Provincial Director of Planning and the Project Implementation Unit at the Ministry headquarters.


You will be working closely with the following institutions/organs:

• National Steering Committee   which  provides policy direction;
• Project Implementation Unit  which coordinates project implementation activities;
• Provincial Director of Planning  whose role is to provide technical backstopping and supervision;
• District Development Officer  who coordinates and reports on all project activities in the district; and
• Development Partners  who you will collaborate with.

Each institution/organ has unique but interlinked responsibilities in the implementation of this project. Therefore, it calls for good interpersonal skills at all times.

Similarly, the Bank through Project Task Manager, Country program Officer will assist these teams whenever called upon through PIU. Therefore, I urge all of you to embrace teamwork so as to ensure success of the project as well as the Ministry.

However, realisation of the Project goal calls for the need to adhere to the various procedures governing the project activities such as bank procurement, disbursement, withdrawal applications procedures, and auditing of the financial statements as set out in the Loan Agreement.

Ladies and Gentlemen: As you are aware, the government has developed and is currently implementing the long-term development blueprint, ËœKenya Vision 2030. The Vision 2030 aims at creating a globally competitive and prosperous country with a high quality of life for all the citizens. It aspires to transform Kenya into a newly industrializing middle income country by 2030.  The Vision is being implemented in a series of 5-year Medium Term Plans, the first one being for the period 2008-2012. The Ministry in collaboration with stakeholders has prepared 20 sector specific plans to implement the Medium Term Plan. In addition, 148 District Development Plans have been prepared to implement the Vision 2030 and Medium Term Plan at the district level. You will be required to familiarize yourselves with these documents to facilitate easier understanding of the current development strategies.

The Community Empowerment and Institutional Support Project aims at contributing towards the attainment of the Vision 2030 goals.  The project will contribute by improving information access by the communities through equipping of the District Information and Documentation Centers with computers and internet in line with Vision 2030 objectives.  It will also enhance the capacity of communities to demand accountability from service providers. It is envisaged that this would lead to accelerated development in the project areas and indeed the whole country.
Before I conclude, I wish to urge all of you to actively participate during the presentations and discussions in this workshop so as to enhance your understanding of your roles as individuals and teams in implementation of the project.

With these remarks, it is my pleasure to declare this workshop officially open. God Bless You All.

Thank you.