Full in-tray awaits the new cabinet
President William Ruto has finally unveiled his Cabinet and other top officials two weeks after he was sworn in as Kenya’s fifth Head of State.
It is his first term in office, hence the men and women selected yesterday would be critical to his legacy as the fifth.
Ruto, who retained one current Cabinet Secretary, established a 22-member cabinet to carry out his manifesto pledges.
The list, which includes faithful politicians as well as senior executives, shows a decisive Ruto who has broken links with his predecessor’s government.
Given Kenyans’ high expectations and the issues that the country faces, the newly nominated Cabinet appointees face a difficult future.
In the Treasury and National Planning docket, the difficult challenge of controlling Kenya’s high cost of living would be a vital test.
Prof Njuguna Ndung’u, who has been chosen for Treasury docket his nomination comes just hours before the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) of the Central Bank meets today to review loan interest rates and announce other steps that would affect inflation and the flow of money in the economy.
Ndung’u, who was Kenya’s central banker at one point was named the least effective policymaker in Africa’s emerging and frontier markets in 2011, according to a Reuters poll of regional analysts.
He lagged behind his contemporaries on the continent in failing to detect and respond to mounting pricing pressures and subsequently presided over the shilling’s spectacular collapse.
This poses uncertainty about performance especially now that today’s attention will be focused on the given that there is already a drive to boost the cost of loans.
Another interesting nominee was Interior Cabinet Secretary Kithure Kindiki putting the question if he is capable of resolving the issue of “arms and governance in the Rift Valley,” only last week, bandits assassinated eight police officers in the north Rift Valley, prompting Ruto to threaten tough action against criminal groups.
The little-known Penina Malonza, who has been nominated for the tourism docket, Malonza has a massive amount of work ahead as according to the Kenya Tourism Satellite Account for 2021, which tracked tourism receipts throughout the Covid-19 period, the sector accounted for a meagre 4 per cent of GDP in 2019.
From the severe drought, which has left millions of Kenyans food insecure and facing starvation, to the public debt that the next administration has inherited, there is much work to be done in the near and medium term.
The public will be seeking proof that the work is being done and that they can see the benefits of government involvement, particularly in the economy.
Ababu Namwamba, the newly appointed Sports Cabinet Secretary, is no stranger to the ministry, having served as its director from 2012 to 2013.
During his one-year tenure, he oversaw the Sports Act of 2013, the founding of the National Youth Council, and the streamlining of the Youth Enterprise Development Fund.
His come back to the Sports Ministry provides him with the opportunity to continue the job he left behind, most notably the smooth implementation of the Sports Act, which has been a source of consternation for many federations.
