Allowances for Officers in Matiangi's Ministry Increased

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Interior CS Fred Matiang'i (right) and his PS Karanja Kibicho (left) at a public event in 2019
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Administrative officers in the Ministry of Interior - under CS Fred Matiang'i - will receive increased allowances after the Public Service Commission (PSC) and the Salaries and Remuneration Commission (SRC) approved the National Government Administrative Officers’ Field Service Allowance.

In a press release dated, Thursday, May 6, Interior PS Karanja Kibicho lauded the two commissions for motivating officers with a view to improving service delivery.

"The authorization of the extraneous allowance had come after extensive deliberations on recompensing the administrators – from the Assistant Chief all the way up to the Regional Commissioner – commensurate with the nature of their work and the risks that they face in the field.

Interior CS Fred Matiang'i inspects a parade during the official opening of 161 cadet officers’ training in Ruiru on Thursday, December 10, 2020.
Interior CS Fred Matiang'i inspects a parade during the official opening of 161 cadet officers’ training in Ruiru on Thursday, December 10, 2020.
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"Besides routine coordination of security services across the country, their mandate has in the recent past been expanded through executive orders which contain presidential directives aimed at strengthening service delivery up to the grassroots level," the PS explained. 

Kibicho noted that the human resource capacity was stretched, compelling the administrators to shoulder almost double the usual responsibilities.

"In determining the allowances, PSC and SRC had also taken into account the extra responsibilities, extraneous nature of their roles, fairness and equity relative to all other public servants, and broad implications on the fiscal sustainability of the wage bill in the entire public sector," the PS added. 

The Ministry of Interior, earlier on, met with PSC to discuss succession management and filling vacancies within the established structures in the Ministry using internal capacity.

The deliberations revolved around the employment terms of administrative officers in the Ministry’s headquarters as well as those in the field

President Uhuru Kenyatta in December 2018 directed that National Government Administrative officers in the field be considered for field administrative allowance. The proposed allowance was in recognition of the highly challenging working environment that the officers operate in.

One year later, the Interior Ministry tasked the National Government Administrative Officers (NGAOs) with extra responsibilities over and above the unusual responsibilities emergent from their core duties in their daily operations.

Some of the duties included to; maintain good government image and specifically representation of the Head of State at any rank in the command and control structure; promotion of statehood and nationhood.

Others were performance of the principal functionary and protocol as the government spokespersons in areas of their jurisdiction; and coordination, supervision, overseeing and reporting on service delivery and projects implementation to the President.

Police officers during a parade
Police officers during a parade
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