Features

Poverty bears heavy burden of Kenyans’ pain

Tuesday, May 30th, 2023 08:00 | By
Poverty bears heavy burden of Kenyans’ pain
Poverty bears heavy burden of Kenyans’ pain

The raging debate on the Finance Bill, 2023 and the impending bipartisan talks focused on the high cost of living and electoral justice pose burning questions on the nation’s political and economic equation.

Do these two unfolding developments offer a lasting solution to the three most pressing challenges facing the majority of Kenyans – poverty, unemployment and food insecurity?

It may be premature to answer this question – a subject of intense public debate and frenetic State lobbying as millions of citizens remain bewildered in a convoluted political and economic environment.

Kenya’s vibrant mainstream media and social media which has revolutionised communication globally and locally, has made it difficult to hide the truth based on the principles of freedom of the press and expression.

Governments must always remember that exercising these rights – without fear of unlawful interference, excessive officialdom or intimidation – is central to living in an open and fair society.

These freedoms and rights enable the voice of the people to be heard on matters of national significance such as the proposed Bill and the government-touted affordable housing levy. The controversial proposal seeks to compel workers to contribute three per cent of their salaries to the project.

Wananchi’s voices matter. It’s an inalienable right to say what they think, share information and demand an honest better life. A right to agree or disagree with those in power and to reject what they feel exploits them or denies them that right.

Before it goes to Parliament where the ruling coalition enjoys a majority, the Bill has been exposed to concerted scrutiny and opinion. The majority of institutional, public, civil society and private sector expressions have largely opposed the proposal, despite high-level intervention and frantic PR.

The hard-to-sell State argument is that the proposal would provide millions of Kenyans with affordable housing, and jobs and create a windfall for businesses and the wider economy. Really? When? And how would this happen? There are more questions than answers.

Would it lift the millions of Kenyans out of extreme poverty? Would the millions of jobless youth all be employed in housing construction and would all they be willing to toil in the tough building work?  Does it make sense to compel workers in the 45-60 age bracket to pay the three per cent housing levy, yet they could most likely already have a house or building pre-retirement?

A citizen from Kitale interviewed on TV last week summed up the lingering challenges facing the majority, saying that instead of dwelling obsessively on housing, the government should first ensure Kenyans have enough food to eat by adequately supporting farmers.

He was right. Food can be the solution to our political, social, environmental and economic challenges. Agriculture is the engine of economic growth, with 75 per cent of Kenyans earning all or part of their income from the agricultural sector, which accounts for 33 per cent of Kenya’s GDP.

The youth are likely to be more attracted to agriculture than construction. Yet in the Sh3.3 trillion 2022/23 budget, the government allocated agriculture Sh46 billion (a paltry 1.39 per cent), despite committing 10 per cent as a signatory to the African Union’s Malabo Declaration of 2003.

As it lobbies for the Bill, let the government allocate agriculture five per cent in the 2023/24 budget and eventually 10 per cent in the 2026/27 budget. That will guarantee food security, create millions of jobs, radically curb poverty and ensure the country’s rapid economic transformation.

— The writer comments on political and national affairs

 [email protected]

More on Opinion


ADVERTISEMENT