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{
    "id": 1401410,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1401410/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 183,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Maara, UDA",
    "speaker_title": "Hon. Kareke Mbiuki",
    "speaker": null,
    "content": " Thank you, Hon. Speaker. I beg to respond to a request for statement by Hon. William Kamket, the Member of Parliament for Tiaty Constituency, regarding the recruitment of rangers by the Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS). Pursuant to the provisions of Standing Order 44(2)(c), the above-named Hon. Member requested for a statement from the Chairperson of the Departmental Committee on Tourism and Wildlife regarding the above subject matter on 11th April, 2024. The Committee resorted to write a letter to the Cabinet Secretary for Tourism and Wildlife that was dated 12th April, inviting him to appear before the Committee on 16th April, 2024. to respond to specific matters that were listed in the statement request. The Ministry of Tourism and Wildlife commenced recruitment of rangers yesterday, 15th April, 2024, following a nationwide advertisement placed on the dailies on 19th March 2024. In the Committee meeting that was held today – and Hon. William Kamket was invited and he was present – the Cabinet Secretary reported to the Committee that extensive efforts had been undertaken in order to mobilise resources for the ongoing recruitment. He noted that the Service did not receive any budgetary support from the Exchequer due to the ongoing national fiscal consolidation measures. However, he noted that the last recruitment by KWS was conducted in 2015, and the Service sought alternative funding to support the recruitment which was aimed at mitigating the ever-increasing human-wildlife conflict. The Ministry utilised the Wildlife Endowment Fund that is within the KWS to recruit 1,000 rangers. Whereas the Committee appreciates the measures taken by the Ministry to facilitate the recruitment, the Committee observed that using counties as the basis for designing the recruitment schedule would disadvantage the members of the public who are living in far flung sub- counties. Article 21(3) of the Constitution provides that all State organs and public officers have a duty to address the needs of the vulnerable groups within the society, including the youth and members of the minority and the marginalised communities. Further, Article 56 of the Constitution mandates the State to put in place an affirmative action programs to ensure that the minority and the marginalised groups are provided with special opportunities to access employment. The Cabinet Secretary indicated that KWS resolved to conduct the recruitment at the county level due to the prevailing budgetary constraints. He submitted that the Ministry implemented a centralised recruitment process that is designed to allocate slots per consistency in order to guarantee fair and adequate distribution of successful recruits. The implication of that is that, it is only the recruitment that will be centralised at the counties’ headquarters level. However, each constituency will have its own fair share. They will have separate recruitment, but in a centralised location. The Members of the Committee raised additional concerns relating to the recruitment; including lack of equal opportunities for the youth at the constituency level, particularly the outlying sub-counties that have limited opportunities. The Cabinet Secretary indicated that the Ministry has implemented a mechanism that will ensure that appropriate corrective measures will be taken when disparities are identified, including adjusting the numbers of recruitment to address the gaps. He submitted that the measures designed to address any possible shortcomings will ensure fair representation of the minority and the marginalised communities considering the population density of each sub-county. The same will also be used to ease logistics and challenges likely to be encountered by the members of the public. As a Committee, we found out that issues of security, like what is happening in Baringo County, can disadvantage the members of the public from Tiaty. Nevertheless, since the exercise has already taken off, we agreed with the Cabinet Secretary that further affirmative action should be taken in case there will be any disparity. The Cabinet Secretary also submitted that the Ministry has established an affirmative action for counties that border national parks and are mostly affected by the human-wildlife The electronic version of the Official Hansard Report is for information purposesonly. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor"
}