UN DESA in collaboration with the Government of the Republic of Kenya and the African Union Development Agency (AUDA – NEPAD) convened the Symposium on “Strengthening Capacities of Public Institutions for Transformational Leadership, Innovation and Inclusion to Realize the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development Agenda 2063 in East Africa”. The Symposium was hosted by the Kenya School of Government and held from 16 to 18 October 2019 in Nairobi. The Symposium brings together 40 country participants from 14 countries in the East African region and 20 experts from academia, CSOs, private sector and international organizations.

 

The three-day Symposium provided an opportunity to discuss the challenges that public institutions in East Africa were confronted with and highlights various solutions for advancing sustainable development in the region. The Symposium also offered a good platform to share strategies, innovative practices and lessons learned on how to promote government innovation for social inclusion of vulnerable groups, with a focus on youth, gender and persons with disabilities. The Symposium featureed site visits to the Huduma Service Delivery Centers and the Water Sector Trust Funds which were awarded with the UN Public Service Awards in 2015 and 2019 respectively.