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{
    "id": 1208184,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1208184/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 172,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Hon. (Dr) John K Mutunga (",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": null,
    "content": "Tigania West, UDA): Thank you Hon. Temporary Speaker for the opportunity to also comment on the Public Investments Management Regulations, 2022. If anything needed management in this country, it is public investment. Public investment has been going on without very clear standards and regulations and the fact that the Committee has thought of going the Project Cycle Management (PCM) way, I believe this is where we are going to pick up our pieces and put them together in order. In the past, most investments avoided serious thinking, scrutiny and assessment. The stages outlining the pre-appraisal, appraisal, project planning development, negotiations, funding/financing, implementation, monitoring and evaluation, audit, and all the others in the project management cycle are very key. Every stage is taken up at any one given time and given sufficient time for it to be thought through. That enables the group or the people planning a project to think through that particular project. They look at the viability of the project and how it is going to help the people. There is also the issue of how sustainable the project is. I would like to say that, most of the projects funded by most of the key development institutions go through this process and sometimes they are a bit tedious because they avoid some of the things that happen quickly. Because they do not happen that fast, people avoid that particular process. I am happy that the Government has decided that the way to go is the PCM way and I will tell you the reason. One of the things that we have observed today is that a PCM cycle creates simplicity. Simplicity is very important in the sense that it simplifies the project itself for people to understand. It creates better understanding of that particular project and understanding yields better implementation which in turn yields better results. The second issue about PCM is improved productivity in the sense that we are able to utilise time effectively. It is said that if you cannot manage time better, you can manage nothing. So, most projects will run in the specified time and therefore they will give the desired results. This leads to successful implementation and execution and realisation of the results in due time. It also helps us to realise the planned targets. Every project must have targets and these targets are time-based and therefore when realised sequentially, we see the extent to which we are realising the project as per the results anticipated at the beginning. The other issue that PCM brings in is the aspect of transparency. Transparency has been an issue in this country and it is important that project cycle management is going to be used now in investing public money. Transparency encompasses communication and laying things bare. PCM as an approach basically outlines, implementation, cost, anticipated output and outcomes and even the impacts that will be there in the future. It enables clear communication within the people who are implementing the project and also the stakeholders who are key beneficiaries of the project and therefore, it helps us to be able to realise this project in a better way and the best way possible. It helps nurture the expectations of stakeholders. Sometimes the stakeholders see a project going on, they do not know what is going in. PCM will have a clear way of communicating what aspects of the project are anticipated at any one particular point in time and it will also be able to give people a clear way forward. Hon. Temporary Speaker, these Regulations have come at a time when we are in the process of investing. Investments in this country need to be focused, tailored in a way that everybody understands and perceives them correctly. Because if they are not perceived correctly, especially by the actors, then we end up wasting money. We will not have white elephants because PCM will make sure that every aspect of the project is taken care of. I support the Regulations and back the Committee. The electronic version of the Official Hansard Report is for informationpurposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor."
}