Coveted Government Board Appointments: What heavy perks do they come with?

These appointments have been billed as a move aimed at rewarding his allies who played key roles in his election as the fifth president of Kenya.

When the Kenya Gazette Vol. CXXV No. 30 came out on 10th February 2023 it took many by surprise but a few must have known what was coming... In the preceding weeks hitherto, some prominent board members had found themselves replaced without ceremony as others “resigned to pursue personal interests” according to today’s parlance.

The Kenya Gazette notice shook parastatal directors to the core; with the stroke of a pen, they were on the streets as “brand new” board members swept into their space.

Kenya is an interesting jurisdiction because an individual appointed to a government board holds it at the pleasure of the executive. Indicative of this is the overwhelming number of the appointees to state corporations being well-known political wheeler dealers and their cronies.

When the appointing authority departs, their days are numbered and it is just a matter of time before they get replaced.

Perks and other emoluments

In January 2018, a circular from the Treasury adjusted upwards the perks and emoluments due to the members of state corporation boards as advised by the Salaries and Remuneration Commission.

The review saw the chairpersons of the Central Bank of Kenya, the Kenya Revenue Authority, Kenya Power, the Kenya Ports Authority, and the Kenya Airports Authority moving upward to draw retainers at the rate of KSh150,000 per month. Others in that category are the chairmen of KenGen, the National Oil Corporation, the Kenya Pipeline Company, and Kenyatta National Hospital boards, all of whom are to get an equivalent retainer.

The following category is the middle category, which includes the board members of East Africa Portland Cement, Geothermal Development Company, Kenya Electricity Transmission Company (KETRACO), Kenya Re, and the National Housing Corporation, will get monthly retainers at the rate of KSh120,000 per month.

The chairpersons of the boards of Kenya Railways, the Export Processing Council the Capital Markets Authority, the Industrial and Commercial Development Corporation, Posta, the National Social Security Fund (NSSF), the Kenya Bureau of Standards (KEBS), the National Hospital Insurance Fund (NHIF), the Commission of Higher Education, and the Retirement Benefits Authority are equally in the group.

In this category are the National Social Insurance Fund Trustees, the Kenya Urban Roads Authority (KURA), the National Council for Population and Development, Kenya National Bureau of Standards, Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital KEMSA, KeNHA, the Kenya National Examinations Council, Kenya Plant Health Inspection Services, the Kenya Tourism Board, the ICT Authority, the Kenya Institute of Curriculum Development and the Agriculture and Food Authority.

The remaining chairpersons of the low-tier State corporations were all put on a Ksh.100, 000 monthly retainers each.

Higher allowances

Apart from the monthly retainers, each chairperson, irrespective of the category of the parastatal was recommended to receive sitting allowances at a higher rate of KSh25,000, up from KSh20,000 per sitting before the 2018 review. The new remuneration advisory raised the accommodation allowance of chairpersons to KSh18,200 per day, up from KSh10,000.

Equally, the top-tier board members who got paid only when on official business before 2018 were put on monthly retainers at the rate of Ksh80,000 per month. The second-tier board members get paid KSh70,000 and the last-tier state corporations compensate their directors KSh60,000 per month.

The 2018 SRC pay advisory retained the KSh20,000 sitting allowance while their accommodation allowance will rose up to a uniform KSh18,200 per day across the categories, from KSh10,000. Other monthly allowances, including KSh5,000 for airtime, KSh2,000 per day for lunch when on official duty, personal accident cover, and medical expenses, remained unchanged.

A lot remains to be realized from the state corporations’ mandate in serving Kenyans and more so from those corporations and councils whose work directly impacts the lives of Kenyan youth such as the newly established Talanta Hela Council.

A lot of the youth who are involved in the creative industry and the ones who are in sports will be looking up to the Talenta Hela Council to come up with facilitative and enabling policies to spur the youth towards self-sustenance, growth, and recognition for their talents and skills.

This, however, does not absolve the other Kenyans who have been given weighty board positions in large corporations the responsibility to deliver on their mandate and make the lives of Kenyans better and more fulfilling. Each board member at their post has to give their all to ensure a truly prosperous nation despite the dampened economic outlook of today.