Leveraging Records Management in ensuring access to public information for sustainable Development in Uasin Gishu County, Kenya

Abstract

Access to public information is crucial for sustainable development. However, in many countries of the world, especially in developing economies, this is an ideal whose achievement has faced challenges marked by limited technological infrastructure, fragmented records management systems and insufficient resources. In the Kenyan context, studies have revealed that challenges in records management affect access to public information for sustainable development. It was against this backdrop, that the present study sought to assess how records management can be leveraged to ensure access to public information for sustainable development in Uasin Gishu (UG) County. Consequently, the study addressed the following objectives namely to: examine the current records management practices in UG County; establish the link between UG County Integrated Development Plan (CIDP) and access to public information; evaluate the effectiveness of records management in ensuring access to public information as a prerequisite for the attainment of sustainable development in the County; and propose records management strategies that will enhance access to public information held by the County government as a means of promoting sustainable development. The study was anchored on two pivotal theoretical frameworks: The Records Continuum Model and the Process Model of Information Management. It was grounded on pragmatic research paradigm associated with mixed methods approach and intrinsic case study design. The population of the study was 110 respondents comprising, 10 County Executive Committee members (CECs), 15 Chief Officers (COs), and 30 Members of the County Assembly (MCAs) representing the public all of whom drive the development agenda of the County and 55 Records and Clerical Officers (RCOs) charged with the responsibility of records management. Given the small size of the population, a complete enumeration of the population (census sampling) was adopted. Quantitative data was collected from COs, RCOs and MCAs using questionnaires while qualitative data was collected through in-depth interviews with CECs, supplemented by observation and documentary review. Qualitative data was analyzed thematically and presented in a narrative description while quantitative data was analyzed using descriptive statistics. The findings of the study revealed that UG County’s records management practices remain largely paper-based. The study also found that the County’s CIDP is aligned with access to public information for sustainable development, as evidenced by strong institutional commitment to transparency, stakeholder engagement, records management integration, and Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 16 albeit with implementation gaps. Similarly, the study also found that records management in the County is largely effective in supporting access to public information and sustainable development, though capacity, policy, and digitization gaps constrain full realization of its benefits. It further found that UG County is pursuing ICT-driven records management strategies to enhance access to public information. The study thus concluded that records management plays a critical role in providing access to public information for sustainable development. The study recommends that UG County government develops and implements a comprehensive records management policy, allocate adequate resources for the records management function, and conduct regular staff training in records management.