Kiambu Bunge Mashinani has revealed that the County Assembly of Kiambu has failed to allot one percent of the overall budget to civic education, in spite of ardent suggestions from residents in every Kiambu sub-county.
This was found out when reviewing the approved Kiambu County Fiscal Strategy Paper (CFSP) for the fiscal year 2024–2025, which marks a critical turning point in the county's governance structure.
The initiative promoted transparency and inclusivity in the budgetary process by collaborating with multiple stakeholders, including members from Youth Alive! Kenya.
The young delegation's presence ensured that the fiscal strategy paper included viewpoints and insights pertinent to the county's youth, addressing their particular needs and desires for a 1% budgetary allotment to civic education and public participation, a request that was previously disregarded.
According to Bunge Mashinani, this lapse is especially concerning because civic education is essential to fostering informed citizens and engaged democracy.
Bunge Mashinani concluded by emphasising that if this allocation is not given top priority, the populace may become disenfranchised and efforts to promote open governance and community involvement may be undermined.
“Failure to prioritize this allocation risks disenfranchising the population and undermining efforts towards transparent governance and community engagement,” said Bunge Mashinani.
