Lands and Physical Planning Principal Secretary Nixon Korir has said that reforms being implemented at the ministry are yielding positive results.
According to PS Korir, reforms including resolving pending issues with the Ardhisasa platform, fighting land cartels through collaboration with the DCI and improving service provision through the revamping of the customer service desks will contribute to enhancing the performance of the department.
The PS also said the reforms in the State department will include transfers of some staff – including clerks, records officers and registrars – with the purpose of improving service delivery.
This, PS Korir said, has elicited pushback from respective persons, who have had tendencies of heading to court to resist the planned changes.
“No one is immune to transfer. Transfers are mandatory for any civil servant, so when you see people going that far to block their transfers there is something there and that’s how cartels work,” he said, calling for change as some officials have served in their positions for close to 15 years with no positive impact.
The PS added that the ministry is working on resolving issues on the Ardhisasa platform, with a technical committee formed by Cabinet Secretary Zachariah Njeru formulating solutions.
The technical team is expected to present its final report to the CS and the PS within the first two weeks of June.
PS Korir said the State Department is now working hard to educate the public on the use of Ardhisasa because it was realized that one of the biggest problems has been limited public awareness.
To make the platform work at its optimum, the ministry has taken over the running of the system which was previously managed by officers from the security sector.
The State Department is also working on resolving a few pending issues with the Ardhisasa platform.
Ardhisasa is an online platform that allows citizens, stakeholders and interested parties to interact with land information held and processes undertaken by the Government.
In early April, CS Njeru and PS Korir chaired a meeting that brought together department staff, the Law Society of Kenya (LSK), Institution of Surveyors of Kenya, Kenya Bankers Association and the Association of Private Surveyors of Kenya.
The meeting held at the Geospatial Data Center in Ruaraka, Nairobi, agreed to form a technical team representing all the groups to audit the platform and work together in formulating solutions.