MP’s fair recruitment push: Is Kisumu leading by example?
By Sharon Atieno, June 29, 2026Calls for fairness in public service recruitment have grown louder in recent months, with the National Assembly of Kenya Public Accounts Committee (PAC) warning that some government offices continue to flout constitutional requirements on ethnic diversity in employment.
During its review of the Auditor-General’s reports for the 2023/24 and 2024/25 financial years, the committee expressed concern that staffing in several senior offices appeared disproportionately drawn from the ethnic communities of those in charge, raising fresh questions about equity and merit in public appointments.
The concerns have for a long time reignited a national conversation about whether public institutions are living up to the Constitution’s promise of fair, inclusive and merit-based recruitment.
At a time when thousands of qualified young Kenyans are struggling to secure employment, confidence in public hiring depends not only on the availability of jobs but also on whether recruitment processes are transparent, competitive and free from favouritism.
Kisumu pushing merit-based recruitment
In Kisumu County, for example, the County Public Service Board recently stated that it is seeking to change that perception by placing greater emphasis on merit-based recruitment and making its hiring processes more open to public scrutiny.
The Board has in recent months overseen several key human resource initiatives, including the confirmation of Universal Health Coverage (UHC) workers to permanent and pensionable terms, ending years of employment uncertainty for hundreds of healthcare workers.
It has also recruited Early Childhood Development Education (ECDE) teachers and Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) instructors to address staffing gaps in public institutions.
Speaking during a recent public gathering, County Public Service Board Chief Executive Officer Bill Omondi maintained that public offices in this country can ensure fairness through a transparent approach to recruitment.
“We do vacancy announcements, recruitment updates and all our board decisions, and official communications are shared openly, allowing the public to follow the recruitment process with greater confidence. It is the best way we can do to ensure fairness,” he said.
Why public trust in hiring matters
According to Omondi, publishing recruitment information and board decisions is intended to improve accountability and assure applicants that hiring processes are conducted openly.
The Board in all counties is a constitutional institution mandated to recruit and manage county public officers.
The recruitment efforts come against the backdrop of growing public demand for county governments to ensure hiring processes are fair, competitive and free from favouritism.
For job seekers, particularly young graduates entering the labour market, such initiatives could help rebuild confidence in public sector recruitment if implemented consistently.
The debate over fair recruitment cannot end in Parliament or committee rooms. It must be reflected in the everyday decisions made by county governments, public institutions and private employers across the country.
If Kenya is to build public confidence in employment, fairness must begin where opportunities are created.