Kiambu Governor William Kabogo says the ‘Kiambu Digitika’ program which was rolled out on a pilot basis last December has seen county revenue collection increasing by 60 percent for the last 3 months/FILE
Kiambu Governor William Kabogo says the ‘Kiambu Digitika’ program which was rolled out on a pilot basis last December has seen county revenue collection increasing by 60 percent for the last 3 months.
“Ninety-five percent of the money collected is in the County Government till, we have done what needed to be done in the beginning; assess our problems, have a roadmap and start collecting money digitally, but we are still handling cash and you know if an office is holding too much money you will get tempted. We want to move to the next stage where you don’t have to touch money as an officer of Kiambu County, let KCB and other banks touch the money,” he said.
Kabogo said the county has embarked on ICT as solution to losses of fund.
The Kiambu Governor further noted: “The County government has waived way leave for fibre optic connectivity and this is an opportunity for the investors to fully install digital infrastructure within the county that will make Kiambu fully digitalized.”
Information Cabinet Secretary Fred Matiang’i called on all 47 counties to embrace ICT to effectively run their counties and to attract investors; the minister urged them to increase in budget allocation for ICT.
He reiterated the government efforts and commitment in providing capacity to help county government realize its mandates to the public.
“We have encouraged counties to do the right thing and what we are launching here is a classic example of how the product has worked. Governors and County Governments that have embraced the ICT Roadmap like Kiambu County have been very successful and we can see the fruits of that work today,” he said.
“We don’t need to preach this anymore, 60 percent growth in revenue collection is enough story for you to know what you have to do,” Matiang’i said.
Speaking during the launch at the Kiambu County offices, KCB Chief Business Officer Samuel Makome said the initiative is part of the Bank’s investment in digital payments as Kenya increasingly moves into a cashless economy, he commended the effort of the county in its money management.
