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SPEECH READ BY H.E. HON. JACKSON K. ARAP MANDAGO, DURING THE HEROS DAY ON 20th OCT, 2015 AT THE 64 STADIUM ELDORET.

Senator Uasin Gishu County,Members of National Assembly,County Commissioner,Deputy Governor,Members of the county assembly.Distinguish guest Ladies and gentlemen,

It gives me pleasure and honour to address you in this important day in our history where we commemorate the sacrifices that our forefathers made for us to enjoy the independence and freedom that we have today.Mashujaa Day reminds us of acts of heroism, patriotism, dedication, sacrifice, patience, and service that have shaped and laid the basis for the present. Many of these acts of heroism and patriotism continue to be carried out every day by ordinary Kenyans.As we celebrate the fruits of our brave and gallant heroes in this region who includes Koitalel Arap Samoei, Barsirian Arap Manyei, Alexander Muge, Jean Marie Seronei, Chelagat Mutai and others, we should always remember to live within the spirit of building a strong cohesive nation.We need new heroes who will stand up against corruption in politics and public life. We need new heroes who will stand up for justice and the protection of human rights. We need new heroes who will champion the education and empowerment of all our people.On this Day we recognize those who have taken up the mantle to fight these challenges and other ills in our society and made significant contributions to the social, economic, political and spiritual development of our nation.Many of the challenges we face today is born out of society change in social dynamics where formerly every child belonged to the community or village and raising of children was a collective responsibility for the whole community. Today children are without mentors and positive role models to guide their social and spiritual development.Apart from these challenges, allow me to recognize the unsung heroes of our recent times who in one way or another have sacrificed for the sake of our development, they are; our parents, the discipline forces, religious leaders, sportsmen/women and other dedicated civil servants whom we mingle with them on daily basis.I particularly salute our athletes for once again for uplifting the face of our Country and region by winning exploits repeatedly reaffirming to the whole world that we can not only win but also maintain the winning formula. Kenyas performance in the recent World Championship in Beijing China where we emerged on top of the world is a statement that we are a Country of sports heroes and a home to world beaters. I laud all the athletes who participated and pay special tribute to Julius Yego who won the first ever Gold medal in javelin and Nicolas Bett in 400M huddles.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

As we may all be aware that our metrological department have raised a red flag on the impending El nino rains, my Government is adequately prepared to address any possible problem that might be caused by the rains, we are opening drainages within the CBD our City, put our emergency and disaster management department on high alert and availing equipment like Excavator, Tippers and Dozers on standby for any eventuality.This will go hand in hand in protecting the new and old roads in the town, the over 2,100 kms of road that we have graded, 385 .7Km gravelled and 51 Kms which has been newly opened, 18 bridges both complete and under construction, over 600 culverts.Our county needs heroes and heroines as we target to grade and gravel more than 360 Kms of earth roads within the County and place a further 1500M of culverts which will be done by youth, Women and People with Disabilities. My government is also surveying 300KMs of roads with a view of protecting them against encroachment.We are mainstreaming youth, women and people with disability entrepreneurship as a source of economic empowerment to these vulnerable groups. To achieve this, over 2000 members of these groups across the County have been taken through capacity building programs under the department of Trade, Industrialization, Tourism Wildlife and Co-operative Development to equip them with skills and knowledge to successfully run their businesses.County Government of Uasin Gishu is pursuing regional integration that will bring together Baringo, Turkana, Elgeyo Marakwet, Trans Nzoia, Nandi, West Pokot and Samburu Counties which will be known as North Rift Economic Bloc (NOREB). We are currently organizing an economic conference scheduled for 18th 21st November here in Eldoret.

This is aimed at bringing about partnership in Agriculture, Tourism, Trade and investment by exploring common grounds to spearhead trade and investment as well as create business environment with the neighboring Counties and private sector players.My administration seeks to entrench value addition in agriculture within the county. To achieve this, my Government through the department of Agriculture has undertaken capacity building programs in 163 active co-operative societies and overseen the registration of 34 newly formed cooperative societies in the county. My government disbursed 20 million to eleven co-operative societies in the year 2014/2015 and further allocated 50 million in the year 2015/2016. Seven million out of this being for the construction of refrigerated stores for the horticultural produce for Ainabkoi and Kesses sub counties. My Government recognizes the critical role played by Small and Micro Enterprises in providing employment opportunities and sustainable livelihoods. As a result, we are undertaking the construction of modern kiosks for wholesale and retail traders in the County, this is in addition to 18 markets which are being constructed or refurbished with modern infrastructure for traders.Ladies and gentlemen,Provision of water and sewerage services is key in any developing City. My government has prioritized water services in the current financial year in order to increase the number of households with clean potable water. Over Ksh 200 million has been budgeted for development of water projects within the county and this is expected to reduce the long distances and time wasted while looking for this precious commodity.The current water production for use in Eldoret town and its environs stands at 36,000 M3 per day whereas the total requirement is about 60,000 M3 per day. To breach this gap, my government in conjunction with Lake Victoria North Water Service Board has advertised for the construction of a 11,000 M3 capacity water treatment plant at Elgarini and works are expected to commence in January 2016.In order to sustain the production of water from our current sources, my government has promoted the protection of the water springs and sources within the county by planting indigenous trees in the last financial year.Members of public are advised to ensure that all water catchment areas, water springs and wetlands within the county are protected. I urge those who have encroached into these areas and riparian lands to voluntarily leave before we reign on them with the purpose of reclaiming them in the interest of public good.In conjunction with Elgeyo Marakwet county and other stakeholders, my government has started the campaign of declaring Kaptagat forest a water tower. This has been necessitated by the fact that water levels in our dams that supply water to Eldoret and river Sosiani has drastically dropped. We ask other arms of Government to support this noble course.In the last financial year, my government rehabilitated six water supplies, namely Mois Bridge, Turbo, Kipkabus, Burnt Forest, Sambut and Sosiani. Mois Bridge water supply is expected to produce 2000 cubic metres of water per day. This will serve the residents and the business men and within the town. In addition, 41 community water projects were funded in the last financial year at a cost of Ksh 55.5 Million and this has increased the number of households accessing water. The communities will be trained on sustainable management and use of the same water sources.Ladies and GentlemenEnvironmental conservation is paramount in my government. More than 500,000 assorted tree seedlings have been planted in the last two years. In 2015/16, Ksh 15 Million has been budgeted for reforestation programme across the county. This is expected to increase our forest cover which is currently below 10% of the total area. I urge all residents to take advantage of the expected Elnino rains and plant more trees to conserve our environment.Along this front, I also want to note that in the last financial year my government rehabilitated the only park within the central Business District in order to give members of the public a place to rest while in town. We have allocated a further Ksh 6 Million for town beautification programme. The target areas to beautify are the major roads cutting across the town and the round-abouts.Security still remains high in the agenda of my Government. To beef up security coupled with an aim of increasing access to electricity, my Government has budgeted to use Ksh 30 Million for security lights and electricity connection in Eldoret town and other peri-urban centres. At its completion, this programme is also expected to boost the morale of business development within the county. Ladies and Gentlemen,Provision of quality and timely health services in all our health facilities within the county remains one of the focus areas in my Government. We have steadily improved health services within the County by employing medical staff and building health facilities. We have so far constructed 25 new health facilities across the County and employed more than 370 health workers. Work is in progress to upgrade six hospitals to level four (one in every Sub County). We have acquired 10 ambulances to facilitate emergency and referral services. We have also availed sufficient medicines and non-pharmaceuticals to all our health facilities. In readiness for the expected El nino rains, we have laid emphasis on preventive measures by educating the public on effects of dirty water and stocked enough drugs as one way of preparedness to treat water borne diseases. Our members of staff in the health sector have been adequately advised on the same.To improve on service delivery, we have deployed Hospital Management Information System (HMIS) at our sub-county hospitals that is; Ziwa, Huruma, Burnt Forest and Turbo. Subsequently, plans are underway to expand the infrastructure of Uasin Gishu District Hospital, Mois Bridge, Kapteldon in Kapseret, Chepkanga and all the other 117 facilities within the county by the end of the year.Expected expansions plans include installation of CCTV cameras at Uasin Gishu District Hospital so as to enhance service delivery and to curb corruption. To improve revenue collection, my government through the department of ICT is in the process of implementing a new revenue collection and management system. This is on its pilot stage and is currently being used in some areas of the county to collect revenue. We have undertaken a baseline geographic survey to provide key information about the county. The availability of this information on an on-line GIS portal can be used for planning purposes.Further, County spatial plan is underway. This is aimed at assisting in the provision of organized human settlement strategy, transport strategy, food security strategy, economic development strategy and a basis for other lower level plans in the County. The plan will be ready in the next 18 Months.Other projects in the planning stage includes the Eldoret southern by-pass zoning plan, Burnt forest, Mois bridge, Cheptiret local physical development plans for controlling development in the corridor and the mentioned urban centers. A valuation roll for Eldoret City and Mois Bridge are being prepared.In conclusion, I would like to urge youth and Women to utilize the opportunities and initiatives that the Government is offering. My Government has allocated KSh.10 Million to purchase and distribute 50,000 improved Kienyeji Chicken through Inua Mama Project. We have also allocated Kshs. 30 million towards engagement of youth in meaningful horticultural activities through Kijana na Acre project which is expected to employ 1,000 youth directly and 3,000 indirectly. In addition to this and in the spirit of empowering youth, we are currently sponsoring 1,200 students in various skilled courses at RVTTI and Eldoret Polytechnic. We are also constructing twelve (12) youth polytechnics across the County (two in every Sub county).

Finally, my Government has employed 1,000 ECD teachers and completed construction of 270 model ECD classrooms which have tremendously improved access to quality ECD education in the County. Ladies and Gentlemen,My county Government just like any other county Governments has faced many challenges. Among them is the deliberately delayed release of funds by the national Government. This has resulted to delayed payment of salaries and bills thereby causing anxiety among workers and suppliers. The delays occasioned since July 2015 are grounding Counties to a halt. Salaries need to be paid on time, the contrary will mean social unrest amongst county staff and stagnation in the provision of essential services to the citizens. The National Treasury must treat this issue with utmost urgency and seriousness and release county monies immediately. The County Governments through the summit of Governors are therefore calling for an urgent Summit meeting by the end of the year to discuss thorny issues including- the state of the economy and the slow implementation of previous Summit resolutions. On the transfer of functions, the council wants to note that the timeline that had been allocated for the complete transfer of all functions assigned to County Governments lapses in March 2016. The limited transfer of functions to County Governments will inevitably culminate into a constitutional crisis if not remedied within the mentioned timeframe. At the moment, the inordinate delays occasioned by the various National Government institutions in the transfer of the remaining County functions have compromised implementation of the same. First, functions must be properly transferred through the recognized legal framework if they are to be effectively implemented. Unless the Transition Authority gazettes for the transfer of a function, a County Government cannot proceed to perform that function. Subsequently, any form of service delivery and revenue collection attendant to the pending functions becomes impeded. Second, we must remember that our governance system is founded upon the funds follow functions principle. As the ground is laid for the transfer of the pending functions, so must the resources be availed for the performance of those functions. In spite of the afore-mentioned, citizens appreciate what the devolved system has brought to the country. Let us all continue embracing it.

In conclusion, i want to wish you all happy mashujaa day.Thank you

H.E. Hon. Jackson K. Arap MandagoGOVERNOR UASIN GISHU COUNTY.