The Relationship between Civic Education and Decision Making in Devolved Governments in Kenya

Civic education is widely recognized as one of the key factors that promote meaningful citizen participation in devolved governments. However, empirical evidence drawn from Kenyan devolved governments shows that civic education has been fragmented, donor-driven and ineffective. The study sought to assess the relationship between civic education and decision-making in devolved governments in Kenya. Empowerment theory was used to guide the study. The study explores some of the opportunities available for county governments to promote effective civic education as well as highlights some of the constraints that counties face in promoting meaningful public participation. Both the descriptive and explanatory research designs were used in the study. The target population of the study was the 5,637,789 citizens aged 18 years and above in the eight devolved governments in Kenya. The sample size was 384 respondents. The main data collection tool was the use of questionnaires whereby out of the 384 questionnaires 339 were filled and returned. Interview guides were also used to interview key government officials from both the executive and legislative arms of the county governments. Document analysis framework was used to analyze key documents relating to civic education and public participation. Quantitative data was analyzed using SPSS and was summarized and presented in tables and figures. Qualitative data was analyzed using content analysis. The results from descriptive analysis showed that respondents were neutral about the statements relating to civic education. Correlation analysis results showed that civic education has a strong positive relationship with decision making in devolved governments in Kenya. The ANOVA results showed that civic education significantly predicts decision making. This study validates empowerment theory’s claim that empowerment of community is key in enabling the community to influence decisions. The study recommends that county governments should promote regular structured context-specific civic education initiatives to enables citizens participate effectively in decision making.