Governance Centre launched

Front row: Prof Anyang’ Nyong’o, Minister for Medical Services (right) with Celestine Otunga (left), Director of Procurement, Ministry of Finance at the launch

The Minister for Medical Services, Prof Anyang Nyongo on Wednesday, 17th September inaugurated the Strathmore University Governance Centre (SGC). The Centre hit the ground running with a health care governance workshop which the minister opened at the launch ceremony. The theme of the workshop was "Risk Management in the Domestic Supply Chain for Health Commodities".

The Minister decried the present management practices in government especially on procurement. He said tendering is an archaic way of doing procurement. "Tendering relies on suppliers determining the price of commodities. For specialized equipment like CT scanners, our purchasing officers should be researching the prices on the internet and then liaising with manufacturers instead of placing expensive tender announcements in the press," the Minister said.

He said it is important for Strathmore to get involved in governance issues as the University is spearheading the utilisation of ICTs in management. The Minister gave the example of storage of drugs. "The cost savings made when we purchase medical consumables to last five years are lost when storage costs are considered. ICTs can help make the supply chain more efficient," the Minister said.

The Strathmore Governance Centre seeks to promote good governance in the public, private and civic sectors in East Africa by carrying out research and analysis on governance issues, facilitating dialogue within and across those sectors, and identifying educational needs and developing appropriate tools and programmes to meet those needs. One of the objectives of SGC is to start a Masters degree in Governance and Ethics.

SGC is part of Hills Program on Governance which was founded by former US Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman Mr Roderick Hills. The Hills Program brings together Governance Centres at universities in China, South Korea, the Philippines, Argentina, Indonesia and Mexico. SGC is the first such centre in Africa to join the Hills Program.

Speaking at the launch, the President of the Hills Program on Governance, Dr Gerald Hyman, said that although governance is not the only key to economic development, it matters. Another speaker at the launch, Kristin Penn, who is a Senior Director at the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) inWashington, DC, outlined how MCC works. MCC funding supported the Strathmore workshop on Governance in the Health Sector.

MCC is a United States corporation designed to partner and work with some of the poorest countries in the world. It was established in 2004. It is based on the principle that aid is most effective when it reinforces good governance, economic freedom and investments in people.