Dan Ochieng Okoth is the new CECM for Finance and Economic Planning in Siaya County following his approval vote by the County Assembly.

The decision comes after a thorough vetting process by the House Committee on Appointments, which cleared Okoth on account of his academic credentials, professional track record, and deep experience in public financial management.

Okoth steps into the crucial docket with a veteran profile in public finance, having started his career at National Treasury as an Accountant Grade II before climbing the ranks to serve as a District Accountant across several regions.

His transition to county governance saw him serve Siaya in senior administrative roles, including stints as Chief Officer for Trade and Industrialization, and later Chief Officer for Finance and Economic Planning.

Discipline and ambitious

Appearing before the vetting panel, the nominee outlined an ambitious roadmap focused on fiscal discipline and administrative reform.

Addressing the county’s ballooning pending bills, Okoth vowed to enforce strict resource management to systematically clear outstanding financial obligations while putting up guardrails against new debt accumulation.

On delayed or rolling projects, he promised to streamline project monitoring and enforce mandatory quarterly progress reporting to give the executive clear visibility during budget formulation.

Okoth also tackled pressing operational bottlenecks, pledging to eliminate non-remittance of employee statutory deductions, protecting staff pensions and medical cover, while fostering tighter interdepartmental coordination to curb perennial delays in budget execution.

With the County Assembly’s green light, Governor James Orengo is now set to formally swear in Okoth to spearhead Siaya’s economic machinery.