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{
"id": 181605,
"url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/181605/?format=api",
"text_counter": 225,
"type": "speech",
"speaker_name": "Mr. Duale",
"speaker_title": "The Assistant Minister for Livestock Development",
"speaker": {
"id": 15,
"legal_name": "Aden Bare Duale",
"slug": "aden-duale"
},
"content": " Madam Temporary Deputy Speaker, I stand to support this Motion. When we talk of unequitable distribution of resources in this country, we are talking about how the education sector and infrastructure resources are distributed. We look at the health and water sectors, and then the people of this country and their livelihoods. We know for sure that the Constituencies Development Fund (CDF), which is a devolved fund, has greatly improved things, and shown that if resources are used equitably, this country will grow at the same pace. If you look at the road network in this country and you compare the North Eastern Province and the Central Province, 99.1 per cent of the roads in the North Eastern Province are impassable. The whole of North Eastern Province, for 45 years, has only seen a 20 kilometres tarmac road. If you compare that with the Central Province which has up to 75 per cent passable roads, you will see the kind of inequitable distribution of resources that has been in this country for the last 40 years or so. October 29, 2008 PARLIAMENTARY DEBATES 3089 If look at the girl child, you will see that for every five educated males in the North Eastern Province, there is one female, while in Central Province you will see that for every one educated woman, there are two educated men, or 1.2 per cent. You will see the graph, or the variance. You will see the same thing with the national examinations. Children in the North Eastern Province walk a distance of not less than 20 kilometres to school; they are victims of poor educational infrastructure and do not have access to clean water. The same children do the same national examinations with children from the Central Province and Nairobi Province, who have all the resources available. We are not treating Kenyans equally. We are not developing this country equally. When you leave one part of this country under-developed, I can say without any fear that you are not developing this country. For you to have a developed country, a country that can be proud of its per capita income--- For you to talk of wealth creation and poverty reduction, it is paramount and that, development occurs at the same pace and devolved resources are prioritised. Madam Temporary Deputy Speaker, that is why I am saying that if you look at the water system and the provision of clean water in this country, the disparity is so wide; when you look at what is in the ASALs, access to clean water, water for livestock and water for basic needs, it is far below what is in other parts. I want to propose here that if the CDF has shown that equitable distribution of resources can be put in place, we want the the Youth Enterprise Development Fund (YEDF), the Women Enterprise Development Fund (WEDF) and the roads funds to be distributed on the same basis; let us look at how this country has developed over the last four years. The rate at which this country invests in many agricultural subsectors, the tourism sector and the manufacturing sector must be the same rate at which it invests in the livestock sector. This will improve the livelihoods of the people of the north, create wealth and fight poverty. Constituencies, districts and regions in this country are not the same. If you look at a district like Kirinyaga, for example, where the employment rate for the girl child is 100 per cent and you compare it with my Dujis Constituency, which is one of the best constituencies in northern Kenyan, where the employment rate for the girl child is 18 per cent, you will see the essence, importance and the urgency of this Motion. We want to create an equitable society and a country where, if one region is lagging behind, the rest of the country feels it. Madam Temporary Deputy Speaker, we are talking of one Kenyan family where you can look at those who are malnourished, those who have no water and those who cannot access education and tell those who have, in one way or the other--- Maybe the Head of State came from that region; maybe people there had more opportunities, but they can say: \"Yes, we are ready at this time to sacrifice and have more resources go to other regions.\" I support this Motion, because one of the foremost political parties put emphasis in its manifesto, during the last general election, on the equitable distribution of resources to the grassroots. Madam Temporary Deputy Speaker, I propose that on that arrangement and basis, then we should look at constituencies and regions based on the several factors that this Motion emphasises. We look at the population, infrastructure, human resource development of that region and the provision of water and education. Even when you want to devolve the Women Enterprise Development Fund (WEDF), the women of Dujis in northern Kenya and from pastoral communities are not the same in terms of education, awareness and their own capacity, compared to those from Central Province who have 100 per cent access to education. It is very important to note that as leaders we must put the issues on the table and look at this country as one. For Kenya to develop and realise Vision 2030 and the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), this country must be developed at the same rate and par, taking into consideration the various factors influencing the various regions. We should ask ourselves why it is 3090 PARLIAMENTARY DEBATE October 29, 2008 that 45 years down the line, we only have a 20-kilometre tarmac road in North Eastern Province. Why is the student enrolment rate in North Eastern Province below the internationally accepted rate? Why do we have 75 per cent of the people of Arid and Semi-Arid Lands (ASALs) living below the poverty line? Madam Temporary Deputy Speaker, with those many remarks, I urge my colleagues to support this Motion and to approve that we base the devolution of resources on the so many factors and make sure that we build one country that is equitable in terms of education, health and provision of water, so that we can create more wealth and reduce poverty. With those remarks, I beg to support."
}