President Ruto Limits Executive Members' Trips Abroad to 45 Days a Year
President William Ruto has limited the number of days that members of the executive can spend outside the country to 45 days per year.
In a memo issued by Chief of Staff Felix Koskei, the executive members should not travel for more than 15 days in a quarter and cannot be out of the country for more than seven days in a row, excluding travel days. The memo was addressed to Cabinet Secretaries, Principal Secretaries, Chief Administrative Secretaries, chairpersons, and chief executive officers of state corporations. Additionally, Ruto has suspended all non-essential travel.
Koskei says that his office shall consult with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to determine if Kenya's participation in trips undertaken by government officials is necessary. Delegations led by a Cabinet Secretary should not exceed four people, including the CS. Delegations led by a Principal Secretary, Chief Administrative Secretary, chairperson, or CEO of state corporations shall not exceed three people, including the head of the delegation. Only relevant technical personnel will be included in the delegation for the trips to assist in meetings, discussions or presentations related to the trip.
People with disabilities will not require assistants to have clearance to travel with them. Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua and Prime Cabinet Secretary (PCS) Musalia Mudavadi are also exempt from this requirement. When applying for clearance, officials must list all travellers and the total cost of the trip.
All travel clearance applications must be submitted at least seven days before the travel date and applications submitted after 5 pm will need to be justified by the CS. The application must include an invitation letter addressed to the applicant, the role to be played, and information on whether the trip is fully or partly sponsored. Additionally, it should provide a program of the proposed event highlighting critical dates and written confirmation from the head of procurement of the requesting agency on the proposed air ticket cost.