KENYA
A Kenyan Government survey that shows that 18,998 workers have retired in the past two years has once again put a spotlight on a growing crisis in the country’s Public Service.
The figures, from the Public Service Commission, also predict that a further 7,000 employees will reach retirement age by the end of the year.
The matter is complicated by the fact that a National Treasury blanket moratorium on hiring is still in place.
As a result, human resource experts in the Government have raised a red flag over a looming crisis if the moratorium is not lifted.
Officials already bearing the brunt of the shortage are expressing concern to journalists in the desperate hope that something will be done.
A 2009 decision to raise the retirement age for PS employees from 55 to 60 has only delayed the need for action.
One Head of Department told journalists the situation meant he had to make adjustments, with one employee performing the tasks of three, compromising quality and efficiency.
“The effect of this is more bureaucracy,” the officer said.
“You must be familiar with increasing complaints about delays in services. They are well founded.”
Public Service Cabinet Secretary, Professor Margaret Kobia (pictured) admits there is a problem.
“About 20 per cent of the workforce will retire in two to three years,” Professor Kobia said.
She said she had asked Heads of Department to identify areas that needed urgent attention.
However, no new money for recruitment is in the country’s current Budget, and it is hard to see how any new jobs can be funded without a supplementary Budget.
Meanwhile, the Government has announced a small pay increase for thousands of PS employees of between KES1,400 (A$19) and KES4,300 (A$58) beginning this month.
It is the second year in a row that the Government has reviewed salaries upwards, following the signing last year of a Collective Bargaining Agreement with unions representing the more than 600,000 Government workers.
Nairobi, 12 July 2018
