Over 600 National Government Administrative Officers (NGAOs) in Kitui County have been trained on grassroots data management for use by both the national and the county government.

The participants, including assistant county commissioners, chiefs, and assistant chiefs, who were drawn across the Kitui county, completed a three-day training programme on grassroots data management, aimed at improving the collection, accuracy, and use of community-level information in government planning and service delivery.

The data training management program, held in Kitui Town, focused on the National Planning Architecture, legal frameworks, and community data systems, equipping participants with digital skills to collect, verify, manage, analyze, and submit reliable information from the grassroots.

The programme sessions covered several aspects of grassroots data management, including data collection, validation, quality assurance, reporting, information management, and the use of digital tools.

The Principal Secretary for Economic Planning, Boniface Makokha, while presiding over the official closing ceremony of the three-day Data Management training, noted that accurate and timely data was essential for evidence-based planning, resource allocation, implementation of government programmes and projects, monitoring and evaluation, and national development decision-making.

“Your role as the National Government Administrative Officer is particularly important to this initiative because of your presence, responsibilities, and also the close engagement with communities at the local level,” the PS underscored in his speech presented on his behalf by the Director of Economist and Planning at the State Department of National Planning, William Komu.

Makokha further added that the national government officers are uniquely positioned to identify emerging issues, capture critical information from the ground, and facilitate its timely flow to inform government planning, policy, and decision-making.

He observed that where information identifies a service delivery gap, an emerging vulnerability, an economic opportunity, or an implementation challenge, it should inform timely and appropriate government action.

Ultimately, data must not only inform decisions; it must translate to action and measurable results.

On the wider planning agenda, the PS appreciated that the data management training initiative comes at an important moment for Kenya’s development planning.

“As we strengthen the national planning architecture and move towards the development of the country’s post-2030 development framework, credible evidence will be even more important,” Makokha said.

The PS appreciated the availability of the grassroots data, saying that the Beyond 2030 national conversation provides an opportunity to reflect on our development journey and shape the next phase of Kenya’s development.

That process must be informed not only by national statistics and expert analysis but also by the realities, aspirations, and experiences of communities across the country.

“Our ambition is to ensure that planning is informed by evidence, implementation is properly monitored, results are assessed, and lessons from the ground feed back into policy and planning,” he said.

The training also sought to strengthen coordination between national and county government structures to ensure that information gathered from communities is used to address local priorities, service delivery gaps, and emerging socio-economic challenges.

The State Department for Economic Planning is implementing Phase II across 25 counties, building on the lessons and experience gained during Phase I, which was successfully undertaken in 11 counties in June 2026.

The State Department for Economic Planning has a central responsibility in this area under Executive Order No. 1 of 2025, including national and sectoral development planning, integration of county and national planning, monitoring and evaluation, management of the National Integrated Monitoring and Evaluation System, and coordination of development priorities.

By Denson Mututo