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"id": 238086,
"url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/238086/?format=api",
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"type": "speech",
"speaker_name": "Dr. Ojiambo",
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"speaker": {
"id": 362,
"legal_name": "Julia Auma Ojiambo",
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"content": "Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, I beg to move the following Motion:- THAT, cognisant of the fact that the poor, especially women and other vulnerable groups suffer marginalisation in their struggle to have access to economic resources owing to the inequitable legal frameworks currently in place; further aware that there is need to encourage investment and promote enterprise in rural and urban areas targeting these vulnerable groups; this House do grant leave to introduce a Community Social Enterprise Bill in order to provide entrepreneurial skills and financial support for these socially excluded groups. Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, for a long time, since Independence, this country has systematically excluded a big portion of its population from accessing economic activities. Some of 3124 PARLIAMENTARY DEBATES October 25, 2006 those exclusions are based on gender, poverty levels, historical and geographical factors. Only a few Kenyans have enjoyed the wealth of this country. Consequently, there has been an unprecedented rise in poverty levels, unemployment and ignorance. There has been decline in investment and security in this country to the extent that, a majority of Kenyans do not even know who owns this nation. Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, you will recall that, at the official opening of the International Investment Conference on 24th, March, this year, His Excellency President Mwai Kibaki stated that the Government had developed a comprehensive investment programme to transform Kenya's economy into the most vibrant, stable and investor-friendly in this region. He stated that the reforms must include creating a legal framework with simplified procedures that govern investment and privatisation. During that function, the President further stated that investments could be done directly or through provision of credit that is necessary for the growth of the sector. Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, there are no programmes to assist the poor in this country to get into real business that would help them improve their lifestyles, leave alone to contribute to economic development positively. We all know that the only panacea to poverty is serious economic growth that leads to increased opportunities for all. Economic growth is primarily driven by application and accumulation of capital, technology and expertise. To achieve that objective, it is not only necessary to equalise opportunities and income by addressing all disparities; be they gender, historical, ethnic or geographical, but also, to address areas in the economy that have direct impact on the poor by removing structural and other distortions that impede their growth. Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, one way of meeting the NARC Government's noble objective contained in the Economic Recovery Strategy for Wealth and Employment Creation and subsequent Budget statements is through the promotion of a strong local enterprise culture that will stem the tide of under-investment and under-capitalization that is manifested in our rural communities and other micro and small-scale enterprises today. Kenyans are determined people, but they lack start-up support. Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, capital is the force that raises productivity. It is an aspect of labour that creates wealth for nations. It is lifeblood of the economic machinery of any nation, the foundation of progress and one thing most ordinary Kenyans seem unable to produce for themselves no matter how eagerly they engage in activities that characterise the working nation that the President has constantly reminded us of. Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, another unfortunate factor is gender imbalance which has been cited as the key factor in propagating poverty. In this country, poverty continues to take the face of a woman selling items in poverty because she lacks ownership and control of a lot of assets that would help her acquire development capital. We know that this gender disparity has contributed a lot to poverty in agriculture. Women do not own land and, therefore, only cultivate land to an extent they can be allowed to do. Gender conscience goes beyond simple physical and biological differences that we know between women and men or boys and girls and embraces different roles that a society assigns to them. Economic development of a nation is one of the roles that must be made accessible to all including women. Most women work in the informal sector where there is an acute lack of social security and access to credit facilities. There is also lack of a regulatory framework to support women entrepreneurship and this is the reason why they are ever on the run being chased around by askaris with goods on their backs. There is no law that protects them against those abuses. There is also no law that states to them that: \"This is where you rightly belong as a trader in this country\". October 25, 2006 PARLIAMENTARY DEBATES 3125 Kenya must integrate its poor in its economy and thereby release the aspirations and energies of its ordinary citizens to contribute to its economic development. This can be done by establishing a widespread form of property law and inventing conversion in the law that will allow for the creation of capital. This would in turn translate economic prosperity from being a private lab of the blue-eyed boys and girls and the politically-right opportunists becoming a popular culture. We must introduce a culture of economic prosperity to Kenyans and not allow it to grow as a right for a few people in a right club. This has been encouraged because currently, there is no legal framework capable of implementing the Government's noble recommendations on community social enterprises. We have enjoyed CDF law and we know that due to its service delivery in terms of infrastructure development, indeed, it has been an excellent step in the right direction. It is an excellent step in the devolution of finances to the service sector. CDF, as we have been told by wananchi, requires a tight law to shield it from crooks who have continuously wanted it to fail. We thank Kenyans for being vigilant and constantly reminding those who are in charge of CDF that the money belongs to them and not the pockets of leaders. The Motion we are addressing today aims to spark direct economic growth from the family and community level through accessing development capital to them directly. This is a practical measure to achieve the intended and craved-for economic goals by all Kenyans. It is against this background that this Motion has come to this House. It seeks leave to introduce a Community and Social Enterprise Bill. This Bill, if allowed to come to the House, will aim at establishing a legal framework. Secondly, it will create a system of validation of community and social enterprises. Thirdly, it will seek to establish a Community Development Ventures Capital Fund. Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, our nation has realised good development from use of the CDF. The benefits brought by the CDF to the service sector in this country have been appreciated. For this reason, we feel that the benefits of the proposed community social enterprise legal framework would also do very well in assisting Kenyans to enjoy being Kenyans. It would give them an opportunity to increase job opportunities for themselves. The first benefit of the proposed Bill will be creation of employment. Secondly, it will result in generation of capital and income. Thirdly, there will be access to affordable financial services. Fourthly, it will assist to inculcate in Kenyans saving habits. Our people are not saving money. They earn and spend on a day-to-day basis. Fifthly, it will increase awareness of self-development and leadership skills among our communities. This is because if they will be able to look after themselves and control their expenses and needs, they will not be easily bought, and thereby lose their voting rights. Sixth, it will increase the capacity of Kenyans to make informed decisions on investments within their own families. Seventh, it will help businesses to grow. Lastly, it will have snowball effects on our economy and service sectors such as education, health and others related to them. Changes that will result from this kind of Bill will cause people to become proactive and be interested not only in their consumption patterns but also in national development. It will assist them to contribute to nation building without fear of taxation. It will help them to become managers of their own development efforts and other matters that contribute to the growth of a nation. This House is, therefore, being asked to grant leave, so that I can introduce a Community and Social Enterprise Bill that will help the young, the disabled, women and the poor to access funds. It will put in place a legal framework that will make money flow to the people directly. Today, we all see money from the CDF going directly to the service sectors. The poor and marginalised women would have access to money that is controlled. They can access that money when they need to invest it, so that they can become part and parcel of their own national economic development. With those few remarks, I beg to move. 3126 PARLIAMENTARY DEBATES October 25, 2006"
}