Public service capacity building is recognized worldwide as a major tool for development. Countries such as France, Italy, Europe, America and Asia have taken bold steps to establish dedicated public servants schools so as to maximize the contributions of their public officers.

United Kingdom, United States of America, Malaysia and Singapore have particularly placed strong emphasis, leveraged and benefited from training their public servants as a means of enhancing sustained economic growth and public service delivery.

As the Government of Kenya continues to put in place a robust corporate governance framework that ensures strategic guidance of public sector organizations, effective monitoring of management and the Board’s or Council’s accountability to the organizations and citizenry; the centrality of Kenya School of Government in supporting the government deliver on its mandate remains strong, steadfast and un-wavered! One of the apex contributions of the School is nurturing public sector leaders through leadership development programmes.

As Kenya prepares for new strategic direction, public sector leaders will have to think of creative and cost effective ways of instituting a wide range of ambitious strategies, initiatives and programs that emphasize excellence in all operational areas of their organizations. It is paramount that such initiatives are able to seek and address institutional governance and operational inefficiencies while continuing to adjust to the ever changing organizational landscapes. Such changes undoubtedly should enable public sector organizations to make remarkable progress and achievement of their objectives and by extension the realization of their core mandates.

Public sector leaders facilitate the establishment of progressive corporate structures that add value to ministries, departments, counties and agencies. It is this leadership that has the power to place organizations at a vantage position to reengineer their focus on effective and efficient service delivery through curtailing proliferation of operational indignities and crisis. Indeed effective leadership is the cornerstone of the modern market-oriented economy!

It is imperative that this leadership lays solid foundations for management and oversight, be strong and firm to exercise their unfettered and independent judgement, promote ethical and responsible decision-making, safeguard integrity in financial reporting, make timely and balanced disclosure, and establish a system to identify, assess, monitor and manage risks and encourage enhanced performance.
It is crucial therefore for Kenya School of Government to ensure that adequate methodological tact is put in place to ensure leadership development nurtures leaders with a balance of skills and experiences capable of keeping abreast of the responsibilities while exercising the duty of care, skill, integrity and diligence expected. Delivery design in place is capable of ensuring that such officers contribute sufficient time and resources to serve the public sector with proper understanding of the operation, business and the regulatory requirements so as to ensure the maintenance of sound and effective operations.

Efforts are made to create transformational leaders who accept that there will be failures and blind canyons along the way, hence the need to conduct regular reviews of the effectiveness of their internal control systems, covering financial, operational, compliance and risk management control functions in efforts to prevent fraud, corruption, and malpractices. It is imperative that these leaders maintain on-going dialogue with stakeholders and make use of available forums to amass synergy.
It is this kind of leadership that will propel Kenyan organizations to perfectly identify and realign national priorities and mainstream organizational operations to contribute to priorities. It is a noble way of enabling this country deliver in the interim, the Third Medium Term Plan, 2018-2022, and progressively deliver on the national blue print- the Vision 2030 as well as international obligations in the Sustainable Development Goals and the Agenda 2063.

Kouzes et al argues that “A good leader is a person with integrity, who is committed to the organization and the people who work together to accomplish the organization’s mission; this person leads by example, communicates without ceasing, and shows care, concern, and consistency in all dealings.” It is my desire that graduates of the Strategic Leadership Development Program; the product of our hard work will continue to play their all important role in maintaining corporate integrity, managing corporate risks and combating against management delinquency. Rosalynn Carter posits that “a leader takes people where they want to go. A great leader takes people where they don’t necessarily want to go, but ought to be.”

Considering progress, the School has a strong foundation laid over the years. I am confident that we are able to deliver on our promise and head right into a new phase of government strategic endeavour in the third MTP, fourth generation sector plans and obligations in the Sustainable Development Goals and the Agenda 2063.

Kouzes et al argues that “A good leader is a person with integrity, who is committed to the organization and the people who work together to accomplish the organization’s mission; this person leads by example, communicates without ceasing, and shows care, concern, and consistency in all dealings.” It is my desire that graduates of the Strategic Leadership Development Program; the product of our hard work will continue to play their all important role in maintaining corporate integrity, managing corporate risks and combating against management delinquency. Rosalynn Carter posits that “a leader takes people where they want to go. A great leader takes people where they don’t necessarily want to go, but ought to be.”

Considering progress, the School has a strong foundation laid over the years. I am confident that we are able to deliver on our promise and head right into a new phase of government strategic endeavour in the third MTP, fourth generation sector plans and beyond.

Dr. Solomon Letangule
Baringo Campus