Moment of truth as President Ruto convenes three-day Cabinet retreat
President William Ruto confers with National Assembly Leader of Majority Kimani Ichung'wah (right) as they arrive for the Joint National Executive Retreat and Parliamentary Group consultative meeting in Naivasha along with top government officials
What you need to know:
- Leader of Majority Kimani Ichung'wah said the Parliamentary Group meeting will set the MPs’ agenda in the House.
- Azimio leader Raila Odinga's bid for African Union Commission’s chairperson’s seat will also be discussed.
President William Ruto will today chair a three-day retreat for his Cabinet and senior government officials in Naivasha, Nakuru County to review the past year's performance amid immense pressure to fulfill key campaign promises.
Cabinet secretaries, principal secretaries, advisers and other top officials are expected to attend the meeting in Naivasha.
The Cabinet meeting will be preceded by a meeting of the Kenya Kwanza Parliamentary Group. The ruling party leaders arrived at the venue of the meeting yesterday afternoon.
The President and Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua are expected at the retreat this morning. This is the third meeting of its kind since the Kenya Kwanza government took power after the 2022 General Election.
A communique from Government Spokesperson Isaac Mwaura stated that President Ruto is expected to set the tone for the government's priorities for the new year.
Although economic recovery and service delivery will be top on the agenda, a number of other key issues will also be discussed at the retreat.
"The government will hold its 2nd annual National Executive Retreat from February 18 to 21. The Cabinet retreat will be preceded by the Kenya Kwanza Parliamentary Group meeting on Monday (today)," Mr Mwaura said in a statement.
"On February 20 and 21, the retreat will review the performance of the current government and will mainly focus on assessing the performance of ministries and state offices. The retreat is expected to review the performance of all ministries and state offices and map out the priorities for 2024, which will be codified in the ministerial performance contracts.”
Prior to the retreat, the President is expected to chair the Kenya Kwanza Parliamentary Group meeting.
National Assembly Leader of Majority Kimani Ichung'wah said the Parliamentary Group meeting will set the MPs’ agenda in the House.
Mr Mwaura said the meeting is aimed at evaluating the progress of the second parliamentary session, assessing achievements and setting the agenda for the coming year as well as the agenda for the upcoming third session.
He said the retreat will review the government lab report based on the 15 key parameters used to assess performance across the 23 ministries, 51 government departments and 348 semi-autonomous government agencies.
"The retreat will also give the government the opportunity to evaluate the achievements of the past 17 months, with the aim of consolidating the gains made to create synergies for the implementation of programmes and activities in calendar year 2024," he said.
The recommendations of the National Dialogue Committee (Nadco) report will also be discussed.
"The retreat is expected to review the performance of all ministries and State agencies and set priorities for 2024, which will be codified in the performance contracts of the ministries," said a release on Friday.
However, some MPs revealed the Nation yesterday that the candidacy of Azimio leader Raila Odinga for the chairmanship of the African Union Commission will also be discussed. Some members of the government oppose Mr Odinga’s bid.
"The recommendations of the Nadco report and the issue of the affordable housing levy will also be discussed,” an MP said.
