The 59th Madaraka Day, with the theme "pamoja tusonge mbele," served as the first Madaraka Day to be honored nationally in the wake of the Covid-19 outbreak that has devastated Kenyans in the recently reopened Uhuru Gardens by President Uhuru Kenyatta after nearly two years of renovations. During the Madaraka Day celebrations, the head of state used the speech as an opportunity to highlight his massive infrastructure projects, including the Standard Gauge Railway (SGR), the Lamu Port, and the newly constructed Nairobi Expressway, claiming that his administration had connected over 11,000 km of roads from the previous regime's 2,000 km.
Here we go.
With regard to education, the president made it clear that he gave priority to the expansion of higher education by introducing the competency-based curriculum (CBC), which has increased the number of Technical and Vocational Education Training (TVet) institutions from 52 in 2013 to 238 at the moment. The president asserts that in 20 disciplines across 97 percent of schools, the student-to-book ratio for secondary education has been reached.
Remittances from the diaspora have increased by ten times. From Sh98.85 billion in 2012, it has increased to Sh413.3 billion today. The president is credited with creating the Universal Health Coverage (UHC), a trial program that was tested in Isiolo, Kisumu, Machakos, and Nyeri counties.
A massive public-private partnership housing project for the Kenya Defense Forces (KDF) was launched in the counties of Nairobi, Nakuru, Laikipia, and Mombasa on December 15, 2021, under the direction of President Uhuru Kenyatta.
Kenya Airways’ KQ and General Electric's Global Growth Organisation’s GE partnered for direct flights between Kenya and the United States will boost trade between the two nations.
CBA and NIC Banks merged into NCBA Group PLC merging their operations, creating East Africa’s third largest bank.
Throughout his time in office, President Uhuru Kenyatta has received critique for his strategies for partnering with the public and private sectors. Economists generally concur that four factors have an impact on economic development and growth; human resources, physical capital, natural resources, and technology.
Regarding the goals he had for Kenya, the president might have been informed and wise. Roads, office buildings, dams, and irrigation systems are just a few of the state-funded projects that are in limbo due to inept management and administration. Delay in paying contractors leads to job losses and firm closures, especially in the private sector. The projects also cause a buildup of unpaid invoices, higher completion costs, and could expose Kenya to legal claims for compensation in the event of cancellations.
In the midst of a cash shortage brought on by the Covid-19 outbreak, the World Bank and the IMF requested that the government terminate some of the pending projects. Projects involving public and private partnerships need to be properly managed to succeed. Those appointed to speak on behalf of the government for partnerships and funding should act as patriots and in good faith, keeping the government's interests at heart.
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