Mzalendo is a volunteer run project whose mission is to “keep an eye on the Kenyan Parliament.” The project was started by two young like-minded Kenyans who were frustrated by the fact that it is difficult to hold Kenyan Members of Parliament (MPs) accountable for their performance largely because information about their work in Parliament is not easily accessible. In our opinion Parliament should be one of the most open institutions in government, yet beyond the coverage from local newspapers it is virtually impossible to keep track of what Kenyan Parliamentarians are doing. Of course one can peruse copies of the Hansard, but one has to go through an arduous process to get access to Hansard copies from the Government Printer’s Office and most people do not have the time to filter through the dense information that is contained in the Hansard hard copies.
One of the founders of the group noted;
The Kenyan parliament's website, was taken down two years ago "after protests by some MPs who were embarrassed about their CVs being published online", and it has not been replaced yet. People have to demand it - and that's what Ory and co. are trying do with Mzalendo: demand accountability from the MPs by monitoring what they do for their constituents.
We wish good luck to the founders of Mzalendo- and hope it will be taken up by other NGOs across the world to demand better accountability from elected officials. In most poor countries supply of governance will remain eternally scarce, may be the demand might create its own supply.
Related;
Kenya's Parliament Website: Too Embarassing for Public Consumption?
LegiStorm- a similar idea about the US Congress which is creating a storm (via Marginal Revolution)
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