Kenya-Italy seek cooperation on governance reforms

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Kenya and Italy are engaging in a structured cooperation between the Italian National School of Administration and the Kenya School of Government.

The cooperation is aimed at aligning partnerships in leadership development, governance reform programming, policy-oriented research, and institutional capacity enhancement.

Head of Public Service Felix Koskei, while delivering a keynote address at the Royal Palace of Caserta in Italy, said the collaboration is integral to building agile, professional, and future-ready public services that can sustain inclusive development outcomes across Kenya and Italy.

The event entailed the launch of a flagship capacity-building initiative for senior public officials drawn from Kenya, Côte d’Ivoire, Ethiopia, and Tunisia.

The engagement, Koskei said, was convened within the framework of Italy’s Mattei Plan, which is repositioning Africa–Europe relations around structured partnership, institutional strengthening, and sustainable human capital development.

Koskei outlined Kenya’s ongoing public service reform trajectory, emphasizing ethical leadership, integrity systems, professional standards, and institutional resilience as the bedrock of effective governance and citizen trust, underscoring the deliberate investments Kenya is making to professionalise the public service and to anchor reform within values-driven administrative cultures.

He also highlighted the strategic role of the Kenya School of Government and allied public sector training institutions in mainstreaming these competencies across the Government.

Kenya and Italy have recently taken major steps to deepen bilateral cooperation with the launch of the Med-Or Italian Foundation for Africa’s first overseas office in Nairobi, positioning the country as Italy’s gateway to the continent.

The opening was marked by the signing of a memorandum of understanding on the blue economy and fisheries, alongside commitments to expand collaboration in science, climate action, agriculture, manufacturing and the digital economy.

The move signals a shift from long-distance engagement to a structured, long-term partnership, as both countries aim to respond to global economic uncertainty by strengthening Europe–Africa cooperation through investment, research, and value addition.

“No one can stand alone in today’s complex and rapidly changing world. No one can do research alone. We must work together and build our future together,” said Italy’s Minister for Universities and Research, Anne Maria Bernini.

She noted that decisions made today in science and innovation would shape societies for decades, comparing investments in research to rockets launching nations into the future.

Bernini noted long-standing scientific ties, pointing to the Luigi Broglio Space Centre in Malindi as a symbol of successful Kenyan–Italian collaboration.

She said Kenya’s strategic location and growing digital capacity make it a natural partner in emerging fields such as artificial intelligence, quantum technologies and sustainable agriculture.

“The choices we make today on knowledge, science and research will launch our communities into the future. Let us launch ourselves together,” she added.

Kenya welcomed the move as a boost to investment and value addition.

Principal Secretary for Trade Juma Mukhwana cited agriculture, climate change, manufacturing and tourism as priorities, highlighting a Sh5 billion leather processing project to shift Kenya from exporting raw hides to finished goods.