Democratic Governance – Protection of Civic Space

This thematic area aims to enhance the attainment of high standards of performance by Kenya's institutions of governance under a progressive constitutional regime. This will be achieved through constant engagement with the institutions of governance as well as the larger public in a quest to create a cohesive environment where participation of all stakeholders is respected and protected.

Ongoing Project: Civilian Oversight Project

Civilian oversight refers to measures that allow civilians to engage with the government. These watchdog measures empower both individual citizens and groups. It is the constitutional responsibility of citizens to monitor governmental bodies, particularly law enforcement agencies, for accountability and transparency, which are critical in any democracy.

Civilian oversight serves multiple purposes, such as promoting the rule of law, protecting human rights, advancing good governance, and fighting corruption and maladministration. It ensures public bodies use their powers and resources in an accountable and transparent manner.

• Capacity building for CBOs and champions on civilian oversight mechanisms.
• Creating linkages between CBOs, champions, and government oversight institutions.
• Documenting cases of corruption, human rights violations, and maladministration, and reporting them to oversight institutions.
• Interface and roundtable meetings with duty bearers and oversight institutions.

Ongoing Project: County Budget Tracking Project

The overall goal of this project is to support good governance by strengthening integrity and accountability in the management of public affairs, with a focus on county budgeting processes. The project aims to empower the public to effectively participate in county budgeting, monitoring, and implementation processes.

The project works in collaboration with county governments and civil society groups to educate the public on their right to participate in budget processes, analyze key budget documents, and run citizen feedback systems through platforms such as the TEMA Feedback App and www.zua.ke.

• Capacity building for CBOs, Budget Champions, and the public on budgeting, public participation, and budget tracking.
• Training Budget CSOs and Budget Champions on how to analyze budget and planning documents.
• Using ICT platforms (Mobile App and WhatsApp) to improve transparency and accountability in public finance expenditure.
• Conducting customer satisfaction surveys on service delivery in the health sector.
• Simplifying budget information for public consumption.