Head of Govt Delivery Services Peter Mbae Resigns

The Head of the Government Delivery Services, Dr. Peter Mbae, has resigned, citing unresolved issues raised to Chief of Staff and Head of Public Service Felix Koskei.

In a letter dated January 9 to Koskei, Mbae walked out of his senior position just under a year after his appointment voicing his concerns over unfavourable working conditions in his office.

“Despite my passion, focus and consistency, for reasons and issues that I have consistently brought to your attention and have not been resolved to date, it has not been possible to carry out my duties as intended and my position as Head of Government Delivery Services is no longer tenable,” the letter read in part.

“In order to be accountable to the people of Kenya, owing to the fact that the appointment was widely circulated, I therefore request to formally disengage from this appointment so as to pursue other interests,” Mbae added.   

Speaking to Kenyans.co.ke, Mbae confirmed his exit saying he will pursue other interests from now on.

“I was a professional in my own right before joining government so I will go back to what I was doing before,” he said.

Mbae, who is a conflict and resolution professional, highlighted his diligence and work ethic in his previous roles within government. Prior to his GDS appointment, Mbae worked in the office of the Cabinet Secretary in the Ministry of Public Service, Performance and Delivery Management as the Head of Ministerial Programmes. 

Before that, he worked as the Secretary Investments Promotion from January 2023 in the Office of Cabinet Secretary in the Ministry of Investments, Trade and Industry (MITI). Mbae also worked as the Head of the Ministerial Delivery Unit.

“In all these positions, I served diligently with utmost commitment and sacrifice, driven solely by the genuine desire to achieve sustainable transformation in the lives of citizens in line with the Kenya Kwanza Government manifesto,” Mbae outlined. 

The Government Delivery Services (GDS) is a centre of government function based in the State Department for Performance and Delivery Management. Its primary function is to improve the coordination of national government flagship programs, monitor, evaluate and report on the timely fulfilment of key development priorities, programmes and projects.

Other functions include tracking and reporting on the status of national government priorities, projects, programmes and presidential directives.

The GDS also conducts problem-solving and provides practical interventions on government priorities, projects and programmes that are facing challenges or bottlenecks.

Aside from that, the GDS carries out independent verification to determine the true status of government projects being implemented in the regions and counties. It also undertakes public awareness creation on the progress and achievements of national government priorities through the public portal, digital and print media.

Mbae’s resignation comes at a time when speculation of a growing disquiet in government is rife. Public Service CS Justin Muturi just recently, seemingly hit out at the government over the recent spate of abductions. Muturi who despite being in government, was an affected party after his son was abducted but later released.