Kenya’s Public Service Ministry says it has fully automated the government payroll, a move officials claim will give the state better control of its wage bill. Principal Secretary Jane Kere Imbunya told a televised discussion that the digitisation is part of a wider push to modernise a workforce she estimates at about one million civil servants serving 58 million citizens. Cabinet Secretary Geoffrey Ruku said the ministry is drafting an internship framework to be rolled out next year and is under “strict instructions” from President William Ruto to ensure all government services treat citizens with respect. Ruku also defended the size of the public payroll, arguing many civil servants remain under-remunerated even as the government confronts complaints of a bloated wage bill. Separately, the Kenya School of Government is establishing a Strategic Foresight and Public Service of the Future Centre to prepare leadership and curricula for emerging challenges through 2040, Director-General Nura Mohamed said. Imbunya added that a dedicated data-protection unit will oversee the ministry’s growing use of artificial intelligence. The various measures will be consolidated under a new Public Service Transformation Policy 2025, which aims to “humanise” public administration, strengthen capacity-building programmes and embed a culture of accountability, according to Imbunya. Huduma Kenya chief executive Ben Chilumo said the reforms align with the country’s Vision 2030 blueprint, adding that citizen satisfaction with government services has already improved.