Mukhebi Theory of Economic Development: Lionizing the Kenyan Economy
Prof. Adrian Wekulo Mukhebi

Abstract
The author argues that since independence in 1963, Kenya’s national mission has been to eradicate three evils of poverty, ignorance and disease. However, these afflictions are to-day endemic in the country and have grown worse. The author offers general principles to explain the phenomena of poverty, ignorance, disease and corruption that afflict the Kenyan nation and its nascent democracy so as to provide a basis for addressing the afflictions and enhancing democracy. He terms this the Mukhebi Theory of Economic Development (MUTED). MUTED states that every shilling spent on public and private sector investment creates wealth, which reduces poverty, ignorance, disease and corruption and enhances democracy. The author presents eight postulates of MUTED in generalized mathematical functions, which can be used to derive, through econometrics or a set of simultaneous equations, quantitative measures for policy prescriptions and impact assessments to address the evils of poverty, ignorance and disease. The author uses MUTED to delineate three phases of a nation’s development path as: Phase I = under-developed (non-industrial) economy; Phase II = developing (industrializing) economy and Phase III = developed (industrialized) economy. The author applies MUTED to the Kenyan economic and political situation, concluding that the country is in Phase I. He then argues that there is an urgent need to deliberately and aggressively undertake public and private sector investments necessary and sufficient to bring about a high and sustained rate of economic growth that is necessary to create wealth, which in turn is necessary to eradicate poverty, ignorance, disease, corruption and promote democracy as postulated by MUTED. He characterizes this process as lionizing the Kenyan economy towards Phase II of economic development. He regards Transformative Leadership, Integrity and Results, through good corporate governance and performance contracting in both public and private sector services, as an approach for lionizing the Kenyan economy, and MUTED as a tool for quantitatively measuring the impact of this approach.

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