Section 8 Developing the Lubricants of productivity: Energy, Infrastructure, ICT, Environment, Research and Development
The commitment of ODM-K to increasing output in the productive sectors of the economy will require the simultaneous development of those sectors and those aspects of the economy that are pre-requisites for the stimulation of investment, productivity and economic growth. These are:
i. Energy
ii. Transport and communication infrastructure
iii. Information Communication Technology (ICT)
iv. Environment
v. Research and Development
a. Energy Development
Energy is the driving force of economic production. Energy is required to turn the motors of economic development. However, energy is both scarce and costly. Most rural dwellers lack electricity while its supply in urban centers is prone to frequent outage. The cost of oil has increased tremendously in the past ten years thereby contributing to increased cost of production, reduced profitability and investment, and curtailed productivity in all economic sectors. Finally, the development of alternative sources of energy has been neglected.
ODM-K is committed to developing Kenya’s energy potential through several measures that can meet the energy needs of a growing economy:
i. Develop geothermal energy, renewable energy potential, and bio-fuels such as Jatropha, based an appropriate energy policy so as to increase the country’s energy supplies
ii. Ensure new housing projects integrate solar energy technology and other appropriate forms of renewable energy in their development
iii. Encourage Public – Private partnerships in investment in the energy sector to expand power generation, including the construction of a new full-size thermal power station
iv. Introduce a regulatory regime designed to ensure the conservation of energy
b. Transport Infrastructure
ODM-K envisages an economy that is literally on the move and will therefore require a new transport infrastructure for acceleration. The country has only a total of about 64,000 KM of road network of which less than 10,000 KM are paved. Consequently, the cost of transportation has remained high, hurts business, and leaves resources in many regions of the country untapped.
Rail transport has been the classical means for economic expansion in many countries since the invention of the steam engine, but in Kenya the rail network has not witnessed any extension beyond the limits of colonial construction. Indeed, the rail system had by the 1990s come to a halt due to mismanagement and now the system is under privatization. The failure of the rail system has ensured continued high cost of transportation that has generally hurt the economy.
Maritime and inland waterways are together an important, low cost means for transportation in Kenya especially along the coast and around Lake Victoria. In addition, Kilindini Harbor in Mombasa is one of the greatest assets of Kenya: the port has a tremendous potential. Kilindini is the main sea port in Kenya and a strategic link for other countries in the hinterland. However, the port functions below capacity, is grossly inefficient, and drastically slows down economic activities.
ODM-K will implement a special road and rail maintenance development program and a new policy on harbors through private–public partnerships. Specifically, ODM-K will:
i. Expand the road and rail network so as to open previously isolated and marginalized regions and trigger investment around locally available resources
ii. Guarantee professionalism and high durability standards in road construction, reducing the high cost of frequent road repairs and reconstruction so that new funding can be devoted to the opening up of new roads. The road construction standards will cover provisions for all road users including pedestrians and cyclists, as well as provisions for bypasses, drainage, and street lighting
iii. Devolve the responsibility for road construction and maintenance so that feeder roads and bridges can be constructed and maintained by local councils
iv. Develop an integrated transport policy covering roads, railways and inland waterways
v. Cooperate with neighboring countries in constructing railroads to strategic frontier points so as to link the Kenyan economy with regional economies
vi. Modernize operations at Kilindini Harbour through the use of IT and containerization systems.
vii. Establish free ports in Lamu, Malindi and Mombasa and create a new “Dubai” port in Kenya.
c. The Environment
ODM-K is committed to the protection of our environment as it is the source of our entire livelihood. Indeed, rapid economic development and poverty alleviation that is envisaged in this Manifesto is based on the exploitation of our natural resources. However, the resources are vulnerable to depletion and must therefore be conserved and allowed to regenerate for our own survival. Yet, such depletion is occurring in alarming proportions and ranges from attack on otherwise rich biodiversity to our soils, our rivers and our forests. The process has placed the present and future livelihoods of our people at tremendous risk.
The crucial importance of the environment to the survival of humankind and to life as a whole compels ODM-K to commit itself to a set of rather drastic, but necessary measures:
i. The role of government will change from being a conspirator in environmental destruction to being a responsible custodian of environmental safety standards on behalf of the citizens
ii. Environmental degradation will be reversed through an intensive environmental rehabilitation and restoration program with special focus on forests, rivers and lakes, wildlife, soil, etc.
iii. There will be severe and prohibitive punishment for violation of environmental protection laws and standards.
d. Water
Kenya is well endowed with water resources - rivers, lakes, and even an ocean. Yet, many of our citizens lack this basic human necessity. Furthermore, water is a key to unlocking the great economic potential of many regions in Kenya and to improving the standards of living of the population in these areas. Presently, the people living by our lakes and rivers do not have clean drinking water! The people in the arid and semi-arid districts and provinces face a bigger, life-threatening scarcity of water for human consumption as well as for the livestock that is the economic mainstay of the local population. For the time-being, pastoral people live at the mercy of nature and occasional rain that is highly unpredictable. Indeed, the provision of water is the only major investment that the people in these areas need from the government so as to raise productivity and help resolve the problem of employment and low incomes. ODM-K recognizes the importance of water for the people of Kenya and for the economy and thus undertakes to provide water for all Kenyans. The party will:
i. Launch a borehole-sinking and dam-construction program in the arid and semi-arid areas such as Eastern and North Eastern Province, the North and South Rift and the Coast so as to trigger higher pastoral productivity rates in these areas. This task will be performed by the Special Water Drilling and Dam Construction Brigade of our military service
ii. Provide clean drinking water in the neglected slum settlements in urban areas and to all other parts of the country
iii. Conserve and protect water catchments areas so as to guarantee future supply
e. Information and Communication Technology
ODM-K recognizes that we live today in an era of technological revolution that is occurring more spectacularly in the sphere of information and communications. Information communication technology (ICT) has become the highway on which the vehicle of economic productivity and social and economic progress is fast traveling in countries that have embraced this reality. The capacity of IT to expedite communication on a 24-hour basis, to store and retrieve information efficiently, to facilitate online delivery of public services and the transaction of national, regional and international business is astronomical advancement. Kenya cannot afford to lag behind ICT development, especially in the light of ODM-K resolve to step up investment and productivity and build a 24-hour economy.
Accordingly, ODM-K will:
i. Expand and modernize the information and communication sector so as to reach the huge Kenyan population that it has not yet reached and double the mobile phone subscription from the present 6-7 million while increasing the number of landline phone connections by 100% from the present 290,000 that cover only 14% of the population
ii. Extend internet connectivity to rural areas, especially to schools, training institutes and the informal sector of the urban economy so as to widen access to online information and communication services to enable traders, farmers, manufacturers and consumers to have easier access to their markets.
iii. Develop e-government programs through expansion of the range of on-line public services, including public information services so as to cut the cost of travel to government service outlets and save valuable time.
iv. Develop best practice e-commerce to expedite economic activities and open up opportunities for employment through online outsourcing of jobs for otherwise unemployed Kenyan professionals
v. Introduce computer and IT studies in all schools and colleges to ensure early development of computer and IT literate human resources. This measure will be taken in conjunction with the provision of energy, especially in the rural areas
f. Research and Development
ODM-K recognizes that human society and the wider natural environment are all in a continuous process of change. This change is underscored by many complex issues that pose a serious challenge to humanity, including healthcare, climatic conditions, social relations, and many others in the economic and political fields. Changes in all of these fields are occurring at such a fast rate that the success of our program for economic productivity and social transformation, including the eradication of poverty will depend on our capacity to cope with these same changes. This requires us to be on the cutting edge of knowledge and on the forefront of innovation.
Accordingly, the ODM-K government will:
i. Allocate sufficient funds for research and development in all fields that have a direct bearing to our main objective of expanding investment, raising productivity, increasing employment and incomes, and raising the standards of living of the poor
ii. Introduce a concerted approach to research and development, including a comprehensive national Research and Development program through a strong National Research Development Centre that will coordinate the work of different specialized research institutes and agencies.
iii. Restore the role of universities as centers for research beyond the present emphasis on teaching. This will be achieved through allocation of corresponding research grants and scholarships
iv. Draw up a thirty-year research agenda based on the priority needs of the country, including a long-term framework for collaborative research in key national and regional priority areas.