President Ruto begins annual evaluation of his Cabinet
President William Ruto (right) chairs a Cabinet meeting at State House, Nairobi on November 14, 2024.
What you need to know:
- The officials were placed on Performance Contracts during the 2023/2024 financial year.
- A circular by Head of the Public Service Felix Koskei indicates that the exercise will kick off next Monday.
President William Ruto’s administration has embarked on an annual performance evaluation for Cabinet Secretaries, Principal Secretaries and parastatal heads for the last financial year amid public pressure for Kenya Kwanza to deliver on its pre-election promises.
State officers in charge of a total of 450 Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs), including State House, Office of the Deputy President, 22 ministers, Office of the Attorney General and Department of Justice, Office of Chief of Staff and Head of Public Service, 265 State Corporations and 159 Tertiary institutions are set for the exercise.
The officials were placed on Performance Contracts during the 2023/2024 financial year.
A circular by Chief of Staff and Head of the Public Service Felix Koskei dated November 25, 2024 indicates that the exercise will kick off next Monday.
“The performance contracting guidelines require among others, that an annual performance evaluation be undertaken for all Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) placed on Performance Contracts. The evaluation and subsequent grading of performance also provides the basis for instituting performance rewards and or sanctions,” Mr Koskei said in the circular to the Attorney General and all Cabinet Secretaries.
The circular has also copied to all Principal Secretaries.
“The annual performance evaluation for these MDAs will commence on 9th December, 2024,” the circular further states.
It will be supervised by Deputy Chief of Staff in the Executive Office of the President responsible for Performance and Delivery Management in Government, Mr Eliud Owalo.
The exercise will entail physical verification of the quarterly and annual achievements for the 2023/24 financial year.
Every financial year, MDAs undergo performance evaluation in order to determine actual achievements against the targets set in the performance contracts.
The evaluation process starts with MDAs undertaking mandatory self-performance evaluation based on the annual achievements and targets.
The government uses performance contracting as the key performance management tool for implementing its programs and projects for socio-economic transformation.
Performance contracting is undertaken on an annual basis with the objectives of improving efficiency and effectiveness in the management of public service.
Section 3 of the 2023/2024 performance contracting guidelines require that the specialized agencies assess the annual performance of MDAs in respect of the specific performance indicators.
According to Mr Koskei, all MDAs are required to undertake their self-performance evaluation using the online government performance contracting system based on the 20th cycle performance Contracting Guidelines.
The results would later be moderated by an external independent team drawn from the Public Service Performance Management Unit (PSPMU).
“MDAs should ensure that the performance evaluation data is comprehensive, verifiable and accurate and that evaluation for each performance indicator reflects the actual achievement. In addition, any exogenous factors that may have affected achievement of the set performance targets should be objectively established, analysed and documented,” Mr Koskei directed.
Last month, President Ruto warned his Cabinet Secretaries that there would be no further excuses and delay in delivery of his administration’s priority projects.
The Head of State made the remarks during the signing of the ministerial performance contract for this financial year.
