The Chairman of the Coast Development Authority (CDA), Mzee Mwinyi, has opposed plans to dissolve Regional Development Authorities (RDAs), arguing that the institutions play a strategic role in Kenya’s development agenda by coordinating shared resources and complementing county governments.

The National Assembly Departmental Committee on Regional Development is conducting nationwide public participation on the Regional Development Authorities Laws (Repeal) Bill, 2026 (National Assembly Bill No. 31 of 2026), which proposes the dissolution of the country’s six RDAs.

The authorities are the CDA, Kerio Valley Development Authority, Lake Basin Development Authority, Tana and Athi Rivers Development Authority, Ewaso Ng’iro South River Basin Development Authority and Ewaso Ng’iro North River Basin Development Authority.

Under the bill, the assets and liabilities of the authorities would be transferred to the State Department for the National Treasury.

Their loans, credit facilities, financial obligations, collateral and securities would also be transferred or enforced against the department.

Employees of the authorities would be transferred to the Public Service Commission on terms and conditions no less favourable than those they enjoyed immediately before the transition date.

Speaking ahead of Friday’s public participation forum for the Coast region, Mwinyi said RDAs were not a luxury but a constitutional and economic necessity for Kenya’s shared prosperity.

He questioned whether Kenya could achieve balanced, inclusive and sustainable development without effective institutions to coordinate shared resources, unlock regional economic potential and bridge development gaps between the national and county governments.

Mwinyi argued that the country needed stronger regional development coordination rather than the dismantling of institutions established to facilitate it.

He noted that the vision of Kenya’s founding fathers was to build a united, prosperous and self-reliant nation in which every region could contribute to and benefit from national development.

“That vision cannot be fully realised if development is pursued in isolated administrative compartments while economic resources, environmental systems, infrastructure networks and livelihoods extend across those boundaries,” he stated.

Mwinyi said the Coast region had immense potential, citing its access to the Indian Ocean, agricultural land, fisheries, livestock, forests, mineral resources, tourism assets, cultural heritage and youthful population.

However, the chairman noted that these resources had not translated into the levels of industrialisation, employment, household prosperity and economic independence that residents deserved.

“We must therefore return to the fundamental question of development: how do we convert what we have into what our people need? The answer lies in coordinated investment, value addition, technology, good governance and institutions that can unite regional priorities into one coherent economic agenda,” Mwinyi said.

He maintained that, if adequately resourced, the CDA had the vision and commitment to help position the Coast region to embrace technological change while building a resilient, diversified and productive economy.

“The Coast does not need development driven by political rivalry or competing institutional interests. It needs leaders and institutions that can work together around shared priorities.

“Our people must be placed above institutional egos, political divisions and jurisdictional competition,” he said.

Mwinyi added that RDAs should be evaluated based on their contribution to livelihoods, economic growth, environmental protection and the efficient use of public resources.

The continued relevance of the authorities, he emphasised, should be assessed in the context of intergovernmental cooperation, shared resources, regional planning and integrated economic development.

“CDA does not exist to replace county governments, undermine devolution or duplicate the constitutional functions of counties.

CDA’s strategic value lies in doing what individual counties cannot efficiently accomplish alone: coordinating shared resources, facilitating cross-county development and advancing an integrated regional agenda,” he said.

By Sadik Hassan