The County Government of Kisii has reaffirmed its commitment to strengthening citizen participation, transparency and accountability in public service delivery following the successful completion of a four-day Training of Trainers (ToT) on the Community Scorecard (CSC) approach.
The training, supported by the World Bank in collaboration with the Council of Governors and the State Department for Devolution, brought together county officers from the departments of Health, Education, Agriculture and Administration. The initiative sought to equip participants with the knowledge and practical skills necessary to facilitate community-led monitoring, social accountability and improved service delivery.
Speaking during the workshop, County Executive Committee Members (CECMs) Erick Ongeri (Education), Daniel Ondabu (Administration) and Elijah Obwori (Agriculture) commended participants for their dedication and active engagement throughout the training. They observed that the Community Scorecard approach would play a critical role in strengthening the relationship between citizens and service providers while promoting responsive and accountable governance.
The participants were taken through the Community Scorecard methodology, its practical application and its role in fostering constructive dialogue between communities and public institutions to identify service delivery gaps and jointly develop practical solutions.
As part of the hands-on learning sessions, participants undertook field visits to Kisii Teaching and Referral Hospital and Ekioga Vocational Training Centre, where they had an opportunity to apply the Community Scorecard processes in real service delivery settings.
The programme facilitator, Michael Juma, a consultant with the World Bank, noted that the practical sessions provided valuable insights into how community feedback can be systematically collected, assessed and translated into actionable interventions to improve the quality and responsiveness of public services.
The training also culminated in the development of Community Scorecard matrices covering three key sectors: Agriculture, Education and Health. The matrices will provide a framework for assessing service delivery, identifying challenges and promoting meaningful engagement between citizens and county service providers.
The County Government acknowledged the World Bank and the Council of Governors for their continued partnership and support in strengthening devolution and institutional capacity. It noted that the inclusion of Kisii County among the six beneficiary counties was a significant investment in enhancing accountable, inclusive and responsive governance.
Representing the State Department for Devolution, Ms. Phoebe Kinuthia challenged participants to translate the knowledge and skills acquired during the training into practical action by cascading the programme to other county officers, mentoring colleagues and facilitating community-level engagement within their respective sectors.
She further encouraged the officers to embrace community feedback as an opportunity for improvement rather than criticism, emphasizing the importance of mutual understanding and constructive engagement between citizens and service providers in addressing challenges affecting public service delivery.
Meanwhile, the Kisii County programme coordinator, Hillary Matundura, who also serves as the Director in charge of Public Participation, emphasized the need to institutionalize the Community Scorecard process by ensuring that issues raised by communities translate into clear action plans, with defined responsibilities and implementation timelines.
Matundura further underscored the importance of integrating findings from the Community Scorecard into county planning, budgeting, resource allocation and performance monitoring processes to ensure that citizens’ feedback informs policy formulation and decision-making.
Reaffirming the County Government’s commitment under the leadership of Governor, Simba Arati, CECM Daniel Ondabu observed that meaningful development can only be achieved when citizens are actively involved in identifying their priorities and shaping solutions that directly affect their lives.
The four-day training marks an important step towards strengthening social accountability and institutionalizing citizen participation in Kisii County. The trained officers are expected to serve as champions of the Community Scorecard approach, ensuring that the knowledge acquired translates into meaningful community engagement and tangible improvements in county service delivery.
