Launching of the Revised Social Budgeting and Social Intelligence Reporting Guidelines

The Economic Planning Secretary Madam Katherine Muoki this morning launched the Revised Social Budgeting and Social Intelligence Reporting Guidelines on behalf of the Principal Secretary Saitoti Torome at a Nairobi Hotel.

The State Department for Planning in collaboration with UNICEF is implementing the Social Budgeting initiative which was launched in 2005.

Social Budgeting is a process through which budget as a policy tool for development is initiated and sustained by the people themselves. It focuses on human needs and ensures that people’s rights to basic services like education,  health care, nutrition,  clean water, and sanitation are budgeted for.

The Social Budgeting and Social Intelligence Reporting Guidelines have been revised in order to revamp operationalization of Social Budgeting.

The revision of the guidelines comes at a time when the country is consolidating gains after a decade of implementing the devolution dream in Kenya.

The potential opportunities inherent in the Social Budgeting initiative cannot be overemphasized as they provide a platform for engagement of all stakeholders in social development to participate in decisions concerning the planning and budgeting.

Through Social  Intelligence Reporting the Government is looking forward to obtaining rich and much needed statistics to augment it’s own databank to design key programmes.

Present during the occasion were among others Anselme Motcho,  Representative, (AI) UNICEF Kenya Country Office, Irene Kizito, Deputy Director,  Inter Religious Council of Kenya, and Waweru Kamau,  Director,  Social and Governance.