Delineation of the National Government and County Government Functions

Alongside the Cabinet secretary, Hon. Oparanya and the Cooperative PS, Patrick Kilemi, had an engagement with a team from the Intergovernmental relations technical committee  led  by John Kimwela, to discuss on the delineation of the national government and county government functions on trade development and regulations as outlined in the Gazette Notice No. 16472 published on December 2024.

The discussion focused on the division of responsibilities and duties relating to trade development and regulation between the two levels of government to ensure effective service delivery, cooperation, and governance.

Under the trade, Development and Regulation function, the management of the credit schemes for MSMEs, operational and compliance has been wholly placed under the county governments functions while the national government will provide policy direction, regulatory oversight and capacity support.

In ensuring equitable economic development, national government plays a critical role of mobilizing resources for the MSMEs sector, and the provision of quality and affordable credit to unserved and underserved segment of society who are perceived to be a risky borrower.

The government continues to facilitate the inclusion of the majority of the population excluded from the forma financial institutions, making it the best unit to manage the credit schemes. For instance, through the Financial Inclusion Fund, it has facilitated “credit repair’ for entrepreneurs who have not been accessing credit from financial institutions.

The Ministry of Cooperatives and MSMEs Development is committed to working with the county government in creating a conducive environment for the growth of MSMES through initiatives like the MSMEs Connect that was launched earlier this year.