There has been increasing improvement in governance in Kenya over the last decade according to a new report by the Mo Ibrahim Index of African Governance, which was released on Monday.

According to the report, Kenya ranks position 13 out of 54 in the continent after scoring 59.3 per cent in overall governance. The Score is higher than the African average (50.8) and higher than the regional average for East Africa (45.2).

The Mo Ibrahim Index of African Governance indicates that Kenya’s improved performance was driven by four key categories namely; Safety & Rule of Law (56.8), Participation & Human Rights (56.2) Sustainable Economic Opportunity (57.2) Human Development (67.1).

Human Rights Violations

Kenya scored the least on the Participation & Human Rights category.

The state, through the Kenyan police has often been accused of violating human rights.

In March this year, a report by Privacy International, a UK charity, revealed that security agencies were conducting “gross human rights violations”

The report, titled ‘Track, Capture, Kill: Inside Communications Surveillance and Counterterrorism in Kenya’ uncovers the surveillance techniques of Kenya’s police and intelligence agencies’, arguing that under the pretext of “counter-terrorism” gross human rights violations have been committed including unjust arrests, torture and disappearances.

The country also achieved its highest sub-category score in Health (77.7) and its lowest sub-category score in Accountability (43.6). In 2015, the country scored 58.8 per cent and was ranked 14th on the continent.

The Ibrahim Index of African Governance provides an annual statistical assessment of the quality of governance in every African country.