Our Functions
The Government Legislative Agenda is an important initiative aimed at leading and coordinating the identification and implementation of key legislative initiatives in the country to drive national socio-economic development. This includes proposed policies, laws, and statutory instruments from Ministries, Departments, and Agencies aligned with major national development frameworks like Kenya Vision 2030 and the Bottom Up Transformation Agenda. (BeTA).
Historically, legislative processes lacked streamlining, leading to disjointed legal reforms by separate MDAs, resulting in duplicated efforts and sometimes ineffective outcomes. This scenario underscores the need for a Whole-of-Government approach to effectively deliver the Government Legislative Agenda, necessitating high-level coordination and synchronization within the government.
The State Department for Parliamentary Affairs is serving as a vital coordination framework, continuousy auditing and assessing government legislations in terms of their adherence to the Constitution, recognition of devolved governance systems, and advancement of sectoral strategic priorities.
It facilitates the identification and development of priority legislation aligned with the National Government Development agenda, engaging all MDAs to ensure timely implementation of policies and legislations that support national development priorities.
Furthermore, the State Department ensures public awareness of the purpose, nature, and impacts of all legislative developments in the national interest.
Development of responsive policies and their continuous review is critical towards supporting timely realization of the national development agenda as outlined in various national development blueprints and frameworks including the BeTA and Medium Term Plans (MTPs) of the Kenya Vision 2030. These blueprints are informed by national development priorities from across all socio-economic sectors and are aligned to regional and international aspirations for a region and world that focuses on improving the well-being of all people and conserving the environment.
The State Department for Parliamentary Affairs plays the coordination role in ensuring that existing and upcoming policies from all MDAs are coherent, impactful and aligned to the national development agenda. It does this through: co-ordinating the identification, prioritization and formulation of policies; Providing timely guidance and direction on the appropriate measures to be undertaken to address the challenges constraining the development and implementation of policies; Overseeing public participation and the involvement of stakeholders in policy making and implementation processes; and Researching and analyzing emerging issues of policy concern, among other related interventions.
The State Department is also keen on establishing ongoing and informative fora for Government, private sector, development partners and other key stakeholders to discuss and share information on socio-economic development trends and recommend appropriate policy interventions;
Previously, engagements between the Executive and the Parliament have been made directly to individual MDAs. There has therefore been no central point for coordination and mechanisms for overall gauging and tracking of dispatch of Government business in Parliament.
As part of its key functions, the State Department will be coordinating parliamentary liaison services across MDAs. This will entail: Coordinating and tracking the legislative development process by MDAs; Apprising Parliament on Government affairs and oversee the Executive’s response to Parliamentary enquiries; Follow to Ensure implementation of commitments given by the Executive to Parliament; and Undertaking capacity development for legislative, parliamentary and policy making affairs for MDAs.