The presidential taskforce on the Review of the Legal and Regulatory Framework Governing Religious Organisations in Kenya has concluded its work and handed its report to President William Ruto on Tuesday.
In the report, the task force has recommended, among other things, enacting statutes for religious organizations, establishing a Religious Affairs Commission and adopting a hybrid regulatory model of self-regulation and government oversight.
“The recommendations in the report advocate the safeguards and protection of the freedom of religion, while concurrently mitigating the potential to inflict harm upon the Kenyan people,” Statehouse noted in a statement
The task force further recommends developing and revising materials for civic education that explain and clarify the rights and responsibilities of religious organizations and citizens and underscore the dangers of religious extremism.
It also called for developing and revising the basic education curriculum to address the significance of religious tolerance and educate and caution the Kenyan public against religious extremism.
To institutionalize the recommendations, the Taskforce has developed a Draft Religious Organisations Policy, 2024, a Draft Religious Organisations Bill, 2024, and a Draft Regulation of Organisations (General) Regulations, 2024.
The task force was established in May last year in response to the Shakahola tragedy that claimed the lives of numerous lives over what the state has described as “religious extremism and sinister misrepresentation of faith.”
