Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua has commissioned the Makutano Huduma Centre in Laikipia East Sub County to ease access to government services for the residents.
Speaking after the launch of the facility in Makutano on Monday, Gachagua said that the state-of-the-art facility would relieve residents’ burden of walking for more than 78 kilometres to access vital government services at the nearest Huduma centres of Nyeri and Nyandarua.
He said that the opening of the Makutano Huduma Centre was accelerated due to the dire need for government services by the residents and the government was working to ensure all services on demand were available.
“With this 51st facility, we are devolving people-centred services to the doorstep. We are reaching over 60,000 customers per day through the Huduma centres in 33 counties across the country,” said Gachagua.
He pointed out that Huduma Centre which was a 2030 flagship project had transformed how residents received government services in both county and National governments.
“The national government has moved services online making them available with technical support by Huduma centres and other available agencies,” said Gachagua.
He called on the county government to prioritize migrating their services online for better delivery to Kenyans and limit human interaction through technology noting it was the cheapest and corrupt-free way in accessing government services.
“In the last 10 years, the Huduma centres have proved an essential component not only in service delivery but also a support system for employment and it is for this reason, that the government is working to establish the facilities across the 290 constituencies,” revealed the Deputy President.
He called on the Parliamentarians to take advantage of the core funding model to establish Huduma Jitume digital hubs in their constituencies for employment opportunities.
“We must create jobs for our youth and as we work to set up Huduma Jitume Digital Centres in the next 12 months, we determine that the same investment in educating our young people is applied in creating employment for them,” said Gachagua.
The state-of-the-art Huduma Centre funded by the National Government Constituency Development Fund (NG-CDF) cost Sh52 million to complete.
Laikipia East Member of Parliament Mwangi Kiunjuri urged local leaders not to stall government projects initiated by their predecessors aimed at ensuring residents benefited.
Leaders who had accompanied the Deputy President included Laikipia Governor Joshua Irungu and his Nyeri counterpart Mutahi Kahiga, Laikipia West MP Wachira Karani, and Laikipia Women Representative Jane Kagiri among others.
By Muturi Mwangi
