Abstract:
Since independence in 1963, the governance of development in Kenya has faced
numerous challenges leading to poor economic performance and hence negative
consequences on Kenyans. The poor-rich gap has not only widened over the
years, but the poverty situation has worsened. Consequently, the government
has identified centralized planning as a serious development bottleneck and
devised strategies for gradual devolution of decision-making power to the local
level. Among other development blueprints is the Constituencies Development
Fund (CDF), which aims at decentralizing development planning to enable
grassroots communities maximize their welfare in line with their needs. This fund
is a consequence of the Constituencies Development Fund Act of 2003, which
provides the governance framework for a transparent and accountable utilization
of the funds. Although CDF is a noble decentralization strategy, it is still prone to
centralized planning and hence cannot holistically be regarded as having moved
the decision-making power from center to the margin. The paper examines the
governance framework availed by the Act in the context of decentralization
paradigm, the possible impact of passive civic participation and proposes
strategies towards effective local level participation in the utilization of the fund.
