Kisumu ready to host legislative conference

Security has been beefed up in Kisumu ahead of the Fourth Annual Legislative Summit that kicks off with pre-summit events this Saturday morning.

All is set for the three-day event at The Grand Royal Swiss Hotel, with the main session starting on Monday. President Uhuru Kenyatta will preside over the opening session.

This will be the first time the annual summit will be held outside Mombasa after delegates resolved to rotate it in the spirit of devolution. The first three summits were all held in Mombasa.

ODM leader Raila Odinga will address the summit on Tuesday and Deputy President William Ruto will be at the closing ceremony on Wednesday.

More than 4,000 delegates who include county assembly speakers, senators and ward representatives from the 47 regional governments are expected to attend the event.

REVENUE SHARING

The summit will assess progress made in legislations that support entrenchment of devolution and identify gaps and challenges in legislation.

The new revenue sharing formula proposed by the Commission on Revenue Allocation last year, the Big Four Agenda and the constitutional reforms debate are among the highlights that will dominate the sessions.

Also featuring prominently will be discussions on regional development authorities versus regional economic blocs.

The summit will examine their establishing frameworks and review implementation progress with regard to resources and legislations.

Pre-summit forums for youth, legislators living with disabilities and women will be held Saturday and Sunday.

Devolution Cabinet Secretary Eugene Wamalwa will preside over the opening session of the youth leadership convention Saturday morning while Senator Isaac Mwaura will be the chief speaker at the pre-summit conference for legislators living with disability.