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"content": "Mr. Speaker, Sir, that aside, let me take this opportunity, first of all, on behalf of the Members of the Committee on Defence and Foreign Relations, to present this Report on the Annual Estimates of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for the Financial Year 2010/2011. I feel honoured to present to the House the Committeeâs findings on the scrutiny of the Estimates. Mr. Speaker, Sir, the mandate of the Committee as per Standing Order No.198(1), (2) and (3) provides that upon being laid before the National Assembly, the national estimates shall stand committed to the respective Departmental Committees according to their mandate. Each Committee is then expected to consider, discuss and review the estimates and come up with a report to Parliament. In executing this, under our mandate is the Ministry of Defence, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of East African Community and the National Security Intelligence Service. Among the issues that we look at is the issue of defence, foreign policy, treaties, international and regional organizations, bilateral and multilateral relations, regional co-operation policy, East African Community and national security intelligence. Mr. Speaker, Sir, pursuant to Standing Order No.152, the Committee commenced the scrutiny of the Printed Estimates of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on 28th June, 2010. Among the issues that we actually scrutinized is whether really, the Budget Estimates adhere to or had some relevance to Vision 2030, Mid-Term Plans, Printed Estimates of the Financial Year 2010/2011, the Budget Speech of the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Finance, the Budget Outlook Paper for the Financial Year 2010/2011, the Budget Strategy Paper for 2010/2011 and the Budget Policy Statement. Mr. Speaker, Sir, as a result of the new Standing Orders, Parliament is part and parcel of the Mid-Term Expenditure Review Framework. I want to take this opportunity to thank your office for having operationalized the most pragmatic Standing Orders south of Sahara. Parliament is no longer a passenger in the making and execution of the budget process. There used to be a time when Members of Parliament were considered by the Executive as an unnecessary irritant. That era is gone. This is high time that the Executive must also familiarize itself with the contents of the Standing Orders. Until and unless the Standing Orders are again amended, I am afraid that we will have to comply with them. Once in a while, you will see some sort of frictions between Departmental Committees and Ministries. This is because we are trying to create a niche for ourselves but not outside our legal mandate. We are creating a niche for Committees in areas that were hitherto considered within the province of the Executive. But eventually, I am sure there will be an equilibrium. Mr. Speaker, Sir, among the observations that we made as a Committee in scrutinizing this is that, there is a very serious jurisdictional and administrative conflict between the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and a number of other Ministries. Unless this is sorted out, the main function of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of projecting, protecting and promoting the image of Kenya, both in terms of perception and reality because foreign policy has two components; there is perception and reality--- This conflict in terms of policy between the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of East African Community, Ministry of State for Immigration and Registration of Persons, Ministry of Higher Education, Science and Technology, Ministry of Agriculture and Ministry of Trade for the sake of our country, must be sorted out administratively either at the Cabinet, Ministerial or technical levels. If you look at the kind of constraints we have had, for example, the role of an immigration attachĂŠ--- An immigration attachĂŠ is a quasi security officer. It is a role where one has to undergo some fundamental training. It is not something that any particular person can just be posted to do. This issue has been in the public domain and I pray that the Ministries concerned will get together and sort out that particular issue. Mr. Speaker, Sir, the other thing that we noted is that in the year 2000, the Government ordered a rationalization committee to review the Foreign Service allowances, but to date, shockingly, our Mission employees have not been considered. We know that there is a serious global economic crunch, but the Mission employees - the Kenyans out there â are protecting and promoting the image of this country. Therefore, they must not live under standards below which they are expected to. To that end, I want to appeal to the Ministry for Foreign Affairs and the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister and Ministry of Finance to consider the plight of those Kenyans who are in our missions. Kenya as a very important country in the East African Community must provide leadership. If you look at our economic role in this country, our Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is almost 60 per cent or even above 55 per cent of the combined GDP of the entire East African countries. Kenya needs to establish a technical fund as part of our diplomatic enhancement to support struggling countries that have not had the benefit or advantage in terms of education, economy and infrastructure that we have had over the years. This will promote trade between Kenya and other countries. Because of high literacy levels among Kenyans, we need to export education. How do we export education? There has to be some form of cultural, educational and economic correlation between Kenya and the countries that we need to do business with. The other thing that has not been addressed, and which I found wanting is the issue of the volatility of the exchange rate which has not been factored in. I am glad that the Minister has mentioned that. This issue needs to be addressed because, once in a while, we need to have some funds to cushion the Ministry of Foreign Affairs because it has more than 52 missions abroad. It relies on foreign exchange rates which fluctuate now and then. It is high time that we put something in place. There is another challenge which is facing this Coalition Government. The other day, there was a roadside pronouncement by the Ministry of Tourism that it has reduced visa fees by more than 50 per cent. That has not had any resultant benefit to the Republic of Kenya. The other day, I was in Russia. There is a company there called Kilimanjaro Travel Agency. You know where Kilimanjaro is situated. It is on one side while Serengeti is on the other side. We also have Amboseli. The visa fees being charged by our neighbours as opposed to what we charge as a country--- We are a very important tourist destination and yet, we have been reduced to be the laughing stock. That issue needs to be addressed. It should not be left to the Ministry of Tourism alone. The decision should be reached collectively by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Immigration and Registration of Persons, Office of the Deputy Prime Minister and Ministry of Finance and Ministry of Tourism. However, when the announcement was made by the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Finance, it affected Appropriations- in-Aid in all our missions very badly. That decision needs to be revisited as a matter of urgency. The other thing that I would like to talk about is disbursements. We have employees in different parts of the world. They rely on the Exchequer. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs does not have its own kitty other than what they get from the managers of our national resource envelop, and that is the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister and Ministry of Finance. Sometimes, our missions get disbursements that are not enough to the extent that many of them live lives which we cannot even imagine. That needs to be enhanced. This is a special Ministry in the sense that it is our number one PR Department. To that extent, it is the face of Kenya. You can call it the interface of Kenya. That needs to be taken care of properly by the policy makers in the Ministry and those of us who manage our national resource envelop. Another issue which we have noted as a Committee is that the Ministry needs to develop a comprehensive policy on acquisition and disposal of properties belonging to missions. This is a critical component. The idea per se is very excellent and that is what we ought to have done. If you look at the history of some of the individuals who have been condemned as dictators--- If you look at their legacies---- If you go to New York, you will see a huge building which is now a legacy. It is owned by Uganda. If you go to town, you will see Uganda House. This is something that ought to have been done a long time ago. What we will continue to question is how the policy will be executed. That must be done above board and it must have the interests of the Kenyan people from every level. That is the only way we can have value for money, appreciation and save taxpayersâ money. I know that time is not on my side. I would like to sincerely thank your office and the Office of the Clerk for the necessary support extended to my Committee to execute its mandate, as we struggle to establish for ourselves and on behalf of Parliament, a niche that is not only going to serve the Tenth Parliament, but one that will be there forever for any other subsequent Parliament. The Committee further wishes to thank the Minister for Foreign Affairs and his team for responding to all the issues that we raised on the budget estimates for the Financial Year 2010/2011. I also want to take this opportunity to thank Members of the Committee for having found time - a Member of Parliament is a very busy person--- I want to thank them for their patience, endurance, sacrifice and hard work during the long sitting hours under the tight schedules which enabled us to complete our task. In line with the Standing Orders, and because the Committee on Defence and Foreign Relations is Committee No.1, we were the first to prepare and live up to our mandate. That would not have happened without the support of your staff. Finally, I want to say that it is my duty as the Chair of the Committee on Defence and Foreign Relations, on my own behalf and on behalf of my colleagues, to present and recommend that pursuant to Standing Order No.152, we support the budget of the Ministry."
}