NAIROBI, Kenya, May 13 – Interior Cabinet Secretary Kithure Kindiki says the Public Benefit Organizations (PBO) Act tomorrow outlays a comprehensive, consolidated, predictable and transparent framework for the registration and regulation of civil society entities operating in Kenya.
According to Kindiki, the Act whose implementation was frozen for 11 years further expedites the registration process of the entities and reduces chances of whimsical administrative discretion in the registration of PBOs.
He stated that it also closes all windows for arbitrariness and offers a litany of tax and other benefits for registered PBOs.
“An inclusive, participatory and open society is good for Kenya. It fortifies our democratic credentials and buttresses our values for transparent governance,” he indicated in the statement.
The new law will now replace the Non-Governmental Organisations Coordination (NGO) Act.
Speaking on Friday, President William Ruto said the operationalisation of the PBO Act was done in recognition of the indispensable capacity of the civil society sector in promoting education, awareness, inclusion, participation and mobilising collective action.
He said that the NGO Act had put civil society through what he termed as a ‘chaotic mechanism’, noting that it had almost eight pieces of legislation governing their operations.