Is the Kenyan Government making good on its Digital Promises?

Among the proposals highlighted as a key part of the current government’s Bottom of Economic Transformation Agenda (BETA) is the development of Kenya’s digital superhighway and creative economy. The thrust to develop Kenya’s ICT sector began way back in 2006, when Vision 2030 framed it as a key enabler and a driver of the country's economic, social, and political development. Many years and tech innovations later, the Digital Economy Blueprint was launched in 2019 cementing the digital economy as a firm installation in Kenya’s long term developmental agenda.

Considering the rapid integration of technology in our daily lives, these commitments seem right on time. From the destructive tech innovations in the transport sector, like Uber and Little Cab, to the new avenues arising for digital content creators to get paid through Wowzi and Spotify , governments need to be ready to navigate the opportunities and challenges presented for netizens along their unstoppable journey to an increasingly digital future.

In response to this challenge, the Kenyan government has championed the development a digital superhighway. The plan is based on the five pillars of digital government, digital business, infrastructure, digital entrepreneurship and digital skills and values.

Infrastructure and Cost of Acces

Infrastructure refers to the basic elements required to enable access to and use of digital technologies. Just as highways require well-designed roads, the digital economy requires certain structures and facilities for people to easily access the Internet and digital services.

To this end the Government has committed to adding 100,000 km of fibre-optic cables, establishing 25,000 free WI-FI hotspots in market centres in every part of Kenya, as well as 1450 digital hubs in every ward. These investments are expected to enable access to high-speed internet across the country there by easing access to both public and private digital services.?

With 38% of the Kenyan population being in poverty, the use of this digital infrastructure will likely be determined by considerations of cost and affordability. The price of airtime, data and technological devices often affects whether individuals choose to take up digital services. To address this, the government committed to bringing down the cost of data and airtime in its manifesto. A slight fulfilment of this promise was seen in the Finance Act of 2023 which, while bringing down the excise duty on mobile data, raised the duty on imported cellular phones.

A Digital Public Service

The Government also seems keen to go online itself. The president has announced a target of 10,000 services to be made available on the E-Citizen platform by the end of 2023. So far, 5,084 services had been digitized up from the previous 320. To enhance uptake of these services, the government plans to advance digital literacy in Kenya. Specifically, it aims to create ICT training opportunities for 20 million Kenyans across the the public and private sector.

What does the budget say?

According to a position paper presented by the @Institute for Public Policy and Governance (IPPG) during its recent Digital Economy Symposium at Strathmore Business School (SBS) , there are several allocations in the budget that align with the stated government priorities in the ICT sector.

1.????Huduma centers service delivery channels allocated Ksh.383 million in the 2023/24 budget up from Ksh 37 million in 2022/23.

2.????Rehabilitation and construction of new optical cable allocated Ksh 1.9 billion in 2023/24. This is a 109% increase from the 2022/23 allocation of Ksh 0.9 billion. Part of the goal is to rehabilitate 690km of existing fibre cable and connect 400 new sites to the network. In addition, the budget indicates the intention to complete the installation of 10,000kms National Optic Fibre Backbone Infrastructure (NOFBI).

3.????According to the Parliamentary Budget Office (PBO) 90% of the budget related to digital superhighway and creative economy in 2023/24 will be taken up by Konza city related infrastructure. While this is mostly made up of infrastructure around the techno city, Konza innovation hub, the highest allocation is for the proposed Kenya Advanced Institute of Science and Technology.

However, a budget is often more than its allocations. The position paper on Government's Fiscal Policy in Supporting the Digitalization of Public Services in Kenya also indicates that funding to the ICT sector has been erratic over the years. Budget revisions through supplementary budgets has seen the sector budget both grow and shrink in-year, creating an instability that can have a disruptive effect on capital-intensive sectors that are ICT-driven.?

More importantly, the sector has struggled to spend all resources allocated to it over the past three financial years. Around 15% of resources allocated to the State Department for ICT's were not spent on average across the three years. This presents a unique challenge to the realization of government’s digital promises as it increases resources to the sector in 2023/24.

Ultimately, the achievement of these promises relies on a vigilant public citizenry. Major thanks to the Bajeti Hub and Kamau Wairuri, PhD, FHEA (UK) for creating spaces for a diverse range of stakeholders to engage in and hold their leaders accountable to the realization of a robust digital economy for all.

Cuba Houghton