kenya-542dc062827868dc.pdf

This January 2021 briefing by the Stockholm Environment Institute examines coordination and accountability mechanisms within Kenya's Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) sector. It identifies a gap between active group-specific platforms and dormant broad-based forums, notes a prevalence of 'soft accountability' lacking sanctions, and analyzes the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on sector collaboration and financial transparency.

• Kenya's WASH sector utilizes diverse multi-stakeholder platforms, but there is a stark divide in their activity levels: platforms for specific groups (such as the Water Service Providers Association and the Water and Sanitation Development Partners Group) are active, whereas broad-based, government-led forums are often dormant, ad hoc, or dysfunctional.
• The Joint Sector Working Group (JSWG), intended as the primary forum for sector coordination and mutual accountability, has become dormant, with joint sector review meetings not occurring for approximately five years and the sector annual report remaining unprepared.
• Accountability in the sector is characterized by 'soft accountability' mechanisms—such as strategic planning and performance reporting—which lack follow-up, sanctions, or consequences for failure to deliver on commitments. Hard accountability is limited primarily to the inspection and regulation of Water Service Providers by the Water Services Regulatory Board.
• The COVID-19 pandemic initially enhanced collaboration and dialogue between the Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Water, Sanitation and Irrigation to coordinate emergency responses. However, it also exposed severe weaknesses in financial accountability, with reports of corruption in the procurement of Personal Protective Equipment (PPEs) and contraventions of the Public Procurement and Disposal Act.
• The Sanitation and Water for All (SWA) Mutual Accountability Mechanism (MAM) is being introduced to the sector to address the lack of mutual accountability. While it has gained some currency among government, CSO, and private sector members, its integration is hindered by the dormancy of national forums and a lack of commitments from development partners.
• Institutional fragmentation exists at the national level, specifically regarding the overlapping mandates for sanitation between the Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Water, Sanitation and Irrigation, although the recent transfer of the sanitation department to the latter is viewed as a positive step toward streamlining.

APA

Stockholm Environment Institute (n.d.). kenya-542dc062827868dc.pdf. https://www.sei.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/kenya.pdf

Chicago

Stockholm Environment Institute. kenya-542dc062827868dc.pdf. n.d. https://www.sei.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/kenya.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Stockholm Environment Institute |title=kenya-542dc062827868dc.pdf |url=https://www.sei.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/kenya.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{stockholmenvironmentinstitutendkenya542dc062827868dcpdf, author = {{Stockholm Environment Institute}}, title = {{kenya-542dc062827868dc.pdf}}, institution = {Stockholm Environment Institute}, url = {https://www.sei.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/kenya.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }