The Role Of Devolution On Economic Development In Kenya. A Case Of Nakuru East Sub-County

ABSTRACT:

Kenya has devolved funds to grass root level with the aim of bringing services and development

close to its citizens in view of vision 2030. However a report by the controller and Auditor

General in Kenya gazette 2010 uncovered massive misappropriation of Constituency

Development Funds in Constituencies. Inspite of this, other constituencies were reported as

posting remarkable performance. The purpose of this study was to examine the role of

devolution on economic development. A descriptive survey design was used. A total of 98

respondents were selected through the census approach. A pre-tested semi-structured

questionnaire and an interview schedule were used to collect data. Statistical techniques

employed in data analysis included Frequencies and means and paired t-test. Results were

considered significant at α-level. The Projects financed by devolution funds are: roads,

Bursaries, Health centers, schools and agriculture. Majority of the respondents reported that

people participate in the CDF funded projects. Of these reported that the participation level is

average. The difference between the mean score on the situation before and after the

introduction of the CDF was statistically significant. The findings from the study show there

was significant improvement in the situation after the introduction of devolution. In conclusion,

the results of the study show that devolution plays an important role in social economic aspects

of the lives of the locals and calls for policy makers to improve on management of the devolved

funds.