Why 7,000 NGOs risk deregistration after three months
Interior Cabinet Secretary Dr Fred Matiang'i in a past event.
The government has given non-governmental organisations that are yet to file their annual returns 90 days to be compliant or risk deregistration.
Out of the 11,890 NGOs registered in Kenya, only about 9,000 are active with just about 3,000 actively filing compliance reports, according to the Ministry of Interior.
That means 7,213 organisations have not regularised their operations.
Speaking during the launch of the NGO Sector 2020/2021 Report, Interior Cabinet Secretary Fred Matiangi directed the NGO Coordination Board to offer moratoriums to those that seek it on reasonable terms.
"We do not want to be unreasonable and hurt anyone. Those that do not turn up to seek a moratorium, those that turn up and disappear or register but their records are not known should know that we have a responsibility to the public because we do not want to discover that we registered an organisation that is funding terrorism in Kenya," he said.
Sh138 billion
The country currently has 9,525 active NGOs operating on an annual budget of over Sh138 billion and thus a big contributor to the Big 4 Agenda.
However, Dr Matiang'i challenged them to allocate more funds to development projects noting that currently, the bulk of their budgets are being spent on salaries and other recurrent expenditures.
"There is no government that is good and strong enough to do all the work that its people would want. That is why we support and want to work with non-state actors," said CS Matiang'i.
Political processes
He added that the government would support those in the governance sector engaging in peacebuilding initiatives, civic education and non-violent participation in political processes, particularly in this election year.
"We will ensure that we provide whatever security you will need to ensure that you operate freely as you reach out to our people," added Dr Matiang'i.
He reiterated that the government has taken a position on fair and inclusive elections and will not shut down the internet and social media platforms as a way to deter criticism.
"We welcome criticism informed and uninformed. As a government we have chosen democracy, we want to live freely with one another and we accept opinions that are different from ours and no amount of criticism will make us clamp down on NGOs and shut down the internet," he added.
