The KEPSA CEO Ms. Carole Kariuki on May 26, 2022 participated in a public lecture hosted by KCA University on the topic, ‘Excellent Customer service in Government as an Enabler for Business.’ During the discussion held in a panel format hosted by Mr. Joe Ageyo – Editorial Director at Nation Media Group, Ms. Kariuki was joined by Mr. Mulei Muia – Director, Department of Public Communication at the one-stop Ministry of ICT, Innovation & Youth Affairs, and Dr. Julius Kipng’etich – Group CEO, Jubilee Holdings.

While passionately speaking about KEPSA’s role in supporting SMEs, Ms. Kariuki started by mentioning that while the cost of starting a business is very high, the more efficient Government services are, the more friendly it becomes for the private sector to operate, especially for SMEs.

“In supporting SMEs in the country, one of the issues we raised with the Government of former President Mwai Kibaki, was the digitization of government services. There are ten issues that affect the ease of doing business, and as the Private sector, we decided to tackle these issues one by one. We started advocating for a one-stop-shop for all government services and that’s why today we have the Huduma Centres across the country.” She said.

Ms. Kariuki continued to say that this efficient Private sector and Government engagement came as a huge benefit to SMEs who are now able to access all Government services in one location as opposed to hopping into different offices. This also included iTax, ArdhiSasa, County government services among other services.

Also speaking on the Private sector and Government engagement, Dr. Kipng’etich said that the Private sector and the Public sector, are just a division of responsibilities. “Because it’s the same citizen that we’re serving but from different directions, there has to be a symbiotic relationship between the two. The Government is good at certain things, and it should remain and be excellent in those things. And the private sector is also very good at certain things, so the two must meet and develop a symbiotic relationship in serving the citizens.” He said.

Dr. Kipng’etich cited countries that have had a huge leap economically like Singapore, South Korea and Dubai, and said that these countries have done so because they had ‘Clever Governments’ that were able to attract private capital. “It is very important that as the result-based private sector is strengthening itself, it has to work very well with a clever government. A clever government is one which has one very strong leadership, that means well for the people, and one that is not corrupt.” He said.

Mr. Muia while speaking on Government evolution as an enabler for business, said that things have changed in the way Government operates.  “We have embraced performance contracts and result-based management system. Everybody has their responsibilities and is expected within particular timeframes to achieve results because at the end of the day, it is just like in the private sector. The government has also taken its role seriously by playing its facilitative role more effectively.” He concluded.

You can watch the full session on this link: https://youtu.be/mLO_k2AALgY?t=1216

This Public Lecture was organized by the leadership of KCA University and conducted at the Ruaraka Campus.