Homa Bay cabinet goes paperless in historic move towards climate resilience
In a landmark achievement yesterday, Governor Gladys Wanga chaired the county’s first-ever paperless cabinet meeting.
The move is part of her government’s commitment to climate change adaptation and resilience, with the aim of reducing tree cover depletion by minimizing the use of paper. 
Governor Gladys Wanga said, “This step is vital in the efficient and effective management of County records for ease of reference and follow-ups and implementation, while reducing punitive recurrent expenses through the purchase of stationery and other office consumables.”
During the meeting, the Executive Committee approved a proposal to restructure and realign some of the sub-departments in the government, in line with its blue print – The Genowa Manifesto. This move aims to ensure prudent service to the citizens of Homa Bay County.
The Executive Committee also learned of plans by the National Government through the Ministry of Trade to set up a Kes. 100M conditional allocation for each county in the country towards the setting up of aggregation centers and industrial parks.
Governor Wanga revealed that the Committee consented to the setting in motion mechanisms to maximize the opportunities available for value addition of Homa Bay County produce.
To this end, the county will earmark at least 100 acres of land for the proposed Homa Bay Industrial Park. Agriculture remains the main income earner for the rural population and a food security stabilizer. With Homa Bay County having approximately 200,000 farmers responsible for feeding a population of about 1,300,000 people, the Committee considered and approved, in principle, the recruitment of critical technical staff in the Department of Agriculture and Livestock.
The cabinet ratified the distribution of a total of 4.6 tonnes of certified seeds per ward across the County, averaging two packets per farmer to help increase yield. Seed distribution will be based on the village cluster system with at least 3 village clusters per sub-location, in identifying beneficiary farmers.
Governor Wanga highlighted the county’s preparedness to complement the National Government’s program of facilitating the last-mile fertilizer subsidy through the creation of sub-depots nearest to farmers who registered across the County.
The Committee consented to setting aside 20% of the County’s upcoming FloCca funds and such future allocations towards greening and tree planting activities.
“The County remains committed and is aligned with the national government’s intention to empower the youth through an initiative dubbed the Youth Green Army for tree planting,” Wanga noted.
The Executive Committee approved plans by the Department of Trade and Industry for a multi-fruit processing plant comprehensive feasibility study. The Multi-fruit Processing industry in the County has an enormous potential with huge opportunities that can transform various livelihoods within the county and beyond.
To address the issue of Sexual and Gender-Based Violence in the County, the Executive Committee meeting approved a proposal by the Department of Gender Equality and Inclusivity, Youth, Sports, Talent Development, Cultural Heritage, and Social Services of developing a policy framework aimed at comprehensively preventing and possibly stopping the myriad phases of Sexual and Gender-Based Violence.
The cabinet also approved Kes. 8M towards the purchase of Educational Aids and Training Equipment for the Vocational Training Centers and Early Years Education centers. The purchased Educational Aids and later Equipment for VTCs will be distributed in the 34 VTC’s and 866 EYE centers.
Finally, the cabinet was briefed on the ongoing staff audit and verification process by PwC, aimed at streamlining the workforce record and instilling effective service delivery to the residents of the County. The Executive Committee continues to meet every two weeks in a month.
