PROFESSOR KUTIMA EXTOLS COOPERATION BETWEEN NATIONAL & COUNTY GOVERNMENTS IN THE ICT SECTOR

Kakamega Deputy Governor H.E Prof. Philip Museve Kutima has hailed the close partnership between the National Government (NG) and County Governments in achieving the Information Communication Technology (ICT) Agenda in Kenya.

The Deputy Governor was speaking in his boardroom when he hosted a delegation from the Ministry of ICT led by the Principal Secretary State Department of ICT and Innovation Jerome Ochieng’, Wednesday morning.

Prof. Kutima said Kakamega county and the NG have partnered in implementing connectivity projects in the county a measure that has seen enhanced service delivery. He underscored the NG’s Last Mile Connectivity project as a great achievement by the sector that will guarantee reliable and affordable connectivity to government offices and Level IV and V health facilities across the county.

“This cooperation goes a long way in addressing the connectivity challenge in Kakamega hence meeting the needs of residents whom we both serve,” he said.

He noted that the Covid-19 pandemic has presented a perfect example on the need for Government officers to embrace technology in delivery of services.

The PS said that the National Government is implementing several programmes in the ICT sector namely the Digital Literacy Programme, National Optic Fiber Backbone Infrastructure (NOFBI), AJIRA programme and the Smart County.

He encouraged youths to leverage on technology to realize their potential in the creative industry.

County Executive Committee Member (CECM) for Finance, Planning and ICT Dr Beatrice Sabana expressed her gratitude to the PS for his continued technical support to Kakamega and reiterated the County Government’s commitment towards supporting the implementation of the NG’s programmes at the grassroot level.

“Investments in the ICT sector are also competing for funds with the other sectors such as Health, Education, Agriculture and Trade among others but we are dedicated towards achieving our objetives,” she said.

The Chief Officer for ICT Mr. Eugene Wamalwa and the ICT Director Hezron Maluweyi also attended the meeting.