NAIROBI, Nov. 14 (Xinhua) -- Kenya plans to implement a raft of reforms in order to fast track the fulfillment of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), a senior government official said on Wednesday.
Deputy president William Ruto told a development conference in Nairobi that the focus of the reforms will include investments in quality and accessible social services as well as consolidating the gains made in devolution.
"The reforms will eliminate structural and policy rigidities in order to guarantee that every development shilling or dollar invested goes as far as it possibly can," Ruto said during the tenth development partnership forum on the government's Big Four Agenda.
The day-long event sought to identify development cooperation and coordination challenges as well as capacity gaps that may impact on the realization of the big four agenda.
The forum was also a mechanism for government and development partners to engage collaboratively in sustainable development in line with the global principles of effective development cooperation.
Ruto said that the imperative to accelerate Kenya's development pace means that there is so much to do, in so short a time, with only so much available.
Ruto said that development partners and the private sector will play a pivotal role in the strategy to manage the cost of living, create jobs, reduce poverty, increase wealth and eliminate inequalities.
He noted said that the government is keen on creating a conducive business environment through infrastructure expansion and investments in sectoral transformation.
Ruto noted that Kenya's external resource policy provides a framework to align government and development partners' views and objectives in a way that ensures synergy and better outcomes.
He observed that dialogue with citizens, development partners, civil society and private sector is sacrosanct as it ensures that the ultimate beneficiaries of public resources are the Kenyan people especially women and youth.
Ruto said that dialogue is important and vital for governance, democracy and development and therefore the media should escalate their capacity so as to intercede between various stakeholders and facilitate free and productive engagement of all voices.
Sicily Kariuki, cabinet secretary in the ministry of health, said that universal health coverage will assist Kenya achieve the SDGs because it will guarantee access by all to quality and affordable healthcare.
Kariuki added that the restructuring and capitalization of the National Health Insurance Fund, reforming the governance of private health insurers as well as the review of the legal regime will result in a necessary alignment that makes health insurance a reality.
She said that investments by both the public and private sectors in primary health infrastructure as well as specialized medical equipment will guarantee increase in the number of facilities at national, county and community levels, so as to ensure that no one is left behind. Enditem
