President Uhuru Kenyatta and his deputy William Ruto appeared to have struck a deal that would see the cabinet expanded to have 22 cabinet secretaries.

In the new deal, the two have agreed in principle to appoint 12 politicians and 10 technocrats expected to be drawn from both the current civil servants and the private sector.

According to The Standard, Uhuru and Ruto will each nominate 11 people who include six politicians and five technocrats each.

National Assembly vetting

The nominees are then expected to be vetted by the National Assembly’s Committee on Appointments.

In his New Year message to Kenyans from State House on Sunday, President Kenyatta said he will appoint his new cabinet in the next few weeks that will chart the country's way forward in his second and final term in office.

“In the next few weeks, I will unveil the men and women to whom I will entrust delivery of the Big Four, and other programmes that will transform this country. I will expect these men and women to serve Kenyans without partiality and with the very highest standard of integrity and efficiency. They must prove themselves worthy of the trust Kenyans will have bestow on them,” Kenyatta said in the live broadcast.

Already, it is believed the president and his deputy have already informed at least six CSs and 10 principal secretaries that they are being considered for re-appointment.

Last month, the secretary to the cabinet Joseph Kinyua directed all the CSs to prepare hand-over notes in their respective ministries, to facilitate a smooth transition pending the unveiling of the new cabinet this month.