Across Africa, governments are digitising public finance systems to improve transparency, efficiency, and accountability. But reform is rarely linear. Building on the 2024 International Conference on Public Finance in the Digital Era, CABRI’s Digital Public Finance Management (PFM) Reform Stories initiative recognises that behind every dashboard and audit trail, lies a complex journey marked by technical hurdles, institutional resistance, and the quiet persistence of reform champions.
This initiative is designed to capture those journeys. It documents not just the systems and reforms themselves, but the lived experiences of those who build, use, and sustain them. From system architects and budget officers to county planners and donor focal points, the stories reveal what it takes to move from fragmented, manual processes to integrated, data-driven governance.
Our goal through this initiative, is to capture not just the systems and reforms themselves, but the human stories behind them: the motivations, struggles, breakthroughs, and lessons learned by those driving change. By facilitating these conversations with reform leaders, implementers, and end-users, the project aims to surface insights that go beyond data highlighting what works, what doesn’t, and why. These stories will serve as a learning resource for policymakers, practitioners, and development partners across Africa, encouraging bold, inclusive, and context-sensitive approaches to digital PFM reform.
Kenya’s REFORMis: Improved Coordination among Ministries, Departments and Agencies
Kenya is the first country to participate in the Digital PFM Stories series, offering a compelling narrative through its homegrown REFORMiS system. Developed by the PFM Reforms Secretariat, REFORMiS represents a shift from fragmented, paper-based coordination to a secure, integrated digital platform that supports reform planning, resource allocation, and performance tracking across more than 35 government entities. Anchored in Kenya’s Vision 2030 and aligned with the Digital Superhighway Directive, REFORMiS is not only strengthening fiscal transparency and efficiency but also positioning Kenya as a continental leader in digital reform coordination.
The Kenya story will be featured prominently in the CABRI Digital PFM Learning peer-learning and exchange (PLE) this December in South Africa. The event will bring together reform teams from across Africa to reflect on Kenya’s experience, exchange insights, and explore how digital tools can be adapted to their own contexts. Through this collaborative platform, the Digital PFM Stories initiative will foster cross-country dialogue, build momentum for reform, and contribute to a more accountable and responsive public sector across the continent.