Kirinyaga County is hosting a high-level Citizen Engagement Forum at Kianwe Primary School in Kirinyaga West Sub-County, in an initiative aimed at strengthening public participation and improving access to government services.
Speaking during the forum, Secretary to Cabinet Mercy Wanjau revealed that the engagement was organized by the Mercy Wanjau Foundation in collaboration with national government institutions, bringing together Cabinet Secretaries, Principal Secretaries, and senior government officials under the theme “Celebrating Growth, Honoring Impact.”
Among the leaders participating are Mercy Wanjau, Secretary to the Cabinet; William Kabogo, Cabinet Secretary for Information, Communications, and the Digital Economy; and Eric Mugaa, Cabinet Secretary for Water, Sanitation, and Irrigation.
“This was a collaborative effort between the Mercy Wanjau Foundation and the Mount Kenya Caucus, designed to bring government services to the grassroots. We have had a good engagement, and we look forward to further engagements,” Ms. Wanjau said.
The forum featured an extensive medical camp coordinated by the Ministry of Health, offering free services such as blood pressure and blood sugar testing, general medical consultations, reproductive health services, cancer screening, dental and optical services, ultrasound imaging, child welfare clinics, and health education.
Citizens are also able to access services from the Ministry of Interior and National Administration, including issuance of birth certificates, national IDs, passports, certificates of good conduct, and alcohol and drug abuse prevention awareness through NACADA.
“We also had a medical camp offering comprehensive services, 14 services in total, ranging from non-communicable diseases, HIV testing, dental, optical, mental wellness checks, and many others,” she added.
The secretary also used the opportunity to encourage citizens to register with the Social Health Authority to enjoy the health benefits.
“We also want to encourage those who have come for the medical camp and are not registered for SHA that they do not leave these grounds without registering for SHA. It is important to register so that as the scheme continues to mature, we are all inside, and we are able to enjoy the benefit of the services that are being provided by the government.”
Legal and administrative services provided by the Office of the Attorney General covered succession and estate management, wills and probate, legal documentation, and marriage registration.
Eric Mugaa, Cabinet Secretary for Water, Sanitation, and Irrigation, made a clarion call for residents of Kirinyaga to shift from rain-fed agriculture to irrigation to achieve food security. He explained to achieve it, there is a need for the construction of more dams, necessitating the creation of an infrastructure fund.
“There is a need for irrigated agriculture; hence, the National Infrastructure Fund to build key infrastructure such as dams.”
Alex Wachira, the Principal Secretary for the State Department for Energy, urged the citizens to protect key government installations, noting increased loss of transformers in the region.
Other ministries participating include Education, offering KUCCPS placement services; Labour and Social Protection, providing NEA, Inua Jamii, and disability services; Gender, Culture, and Children Services, supporting bursaries, child protection, foster care, and adolescent mentorship; and Youth and Creative Affairs, which will roll out the NYOTA program and donate football kits and balls to local teams.
The Ministry of Lands will engage citizens on the Affordable Housing Programme (Boma Yangu), underscoring the government’s commitment to citizen engagement, inclusive development, and delivering services directly to wananchi at the grassroots level.
By Mutai Kipng’etich
