More than 500 residents of Kitengela have benefited from a wide range of government services offered through a Huduma Mashinani outreach programme held at the Kitengela Assistant County Commissioner’s grounds.
The initiative, organised by the Kajiado Huduma Centre, brought key government services closer to residents, enabling them to access services without travelling to Kajiado Town.
Among the services offered during the outreach were application and replacement of national identity cards, birth certificate processing, Social Health Authority (SHA) registration, certificates of good conduct, cyber services and other government services commonly accessed through Huduma Centres.
Speaking during the exercise, Kajiado Huduma Centre Manager Mwanajuma Masa said the outreach programme is part of the government’s efforts to improve service delivery by taking essential public services closer to communities facing challenges accessing Huduma Centres.
She explained that the Kitengela outreach was organised following a request from the area’s Assistant County Commissioner after it emerged that many residents were unable to travel to Kajiado Town because of transport costs.
Masa noted that although a significant number of people seeking services at the Kajiado Huduma Centre come from Kitengela, many fail to complete their applications due to the financial burden of travelling to and from the centre.
“Though most of the people who seek services at the Kajiado Huduma Centre are from Kitengela, many are unable to access the government services we offer because they cannot afford transport. We therefore found it necessary to bring these services closer to them,” she said.
She said the success of the outreach had demonstrated the importance of decentralising government services to ensure all citizens access services conveniently and within reasonable distances.
Masa disclosed that the Huduma Centre plans to extend the outreach programme to other remote parts of Kajiado County, including Magadi and other underserved areas, to enable more residents to benefit from government services.
She observed that although the government funds the Huduma Mashinani programme on a quarterly basis, additional support from development partners, corporate organisations and other well-wishers would help expand the initiative to reach more communities.
The manager appealed to partners willing to support the programme to collaborate with the Huduma Centre in extending services to remote areas where residents continue to face challenges accessing government offices.
She said birth certificates processed during the outreach would be ready within 10 days, while applicants for national identity cards are expected to receive them in about three weeks.
Masa further revealed plans to deploy an officer to Kitengela every month to offer birth registration services, enabling residents to submit applications and collect the completed certificates at the same location.
“We are planning to have an officer offering birth certificate services every month in Kitengela. Residents will apply here and, once the certificates are ready, they will collect them from the same place,” she said.
Residents who benefited from the initiative welcomed the outreach, saying it had reduced the cost and inconvenience of travelling long distances to access essential government services.
Winnie Njoki, one of the beneficiaries, said she was finally able to apply for a birth certificate for her five-month-old daughter after previously postponing the exercise because of transport expenses.
“I have wanted to apply for my daughter’s birth certificate, but transport costs to Kajiado have been a challenge. Bringing these services to Kitengela has really helped us,” she said.
Another resident, Brian Simiyu, thanked the Huduma Centre for taking the services closer to the people, saying he had been struggling to replace his lost national identity card because of the cost of travelling to Kajiado Town.
He said the outreach enabled him to access the service quickly, conveniently and at a lower cost.
By Diana Meneto
