Professionals at the Coast have raised concerns over the fourth basis for revenue sharing among county governments that is currently being crafted by the Commission for Revenue Allocation.
The proposed formula is still being deliberated on in Parliament and seeks to stabilise county revenues and address economic disparities through measures such as the income distance parameter.
Coast People’s Forum on Friday expressed strong reservations about the current structure of the fourth basis as proposed.
Secretary general Stephen Mwakesi said while the proposed formula will help counties gain nominally, the gains are uneven and raise serious concerns about fairness over time.
“We believe the formula could ultimately widen existing inequalities, particularly for historically marginalised counties in the region,” Mwakesi said.
He said over-reliance on population, at 42 per cent, as a matrix will disproportionately benefit the populous counties and undermine the principle of equitable development
“Counties such as Lamu, Tana River and Taita Taveta, with traditionally few populations, will have their share continuously reduce over time,” Mwakesi said.
The professionals called on the Senate to reject the formula as it entrenches inequality.
Instead, they want the adoption of a hybrid formula that delivers both stability and justice.
Mwakesi said the fourth basis eliminates sectoral allocations where targeted indices such as health, agriculture, roads and urban services erase mechanisms that previously supported underdeveloped counties.
He said the fourth basis does not include proposals to incorporate the blue economy and Coast-specific indicators, which were acknowledged during partner consultations.
“We are surprised that after acknowledging the suggestions, they are absent in the final formula," Mwakesi said.
He said the income distance metric lacks transparency and has shown limited power to correct disparities.
The metric was meant to direct more resources to poorer counties based on how far their economic output per person falls below the richest county.
“CRA has not published a detailed county-by-county breakdown showing how income distances values were derived, what data years were used, or how those numbers determined how much money each county would receive,” Mwakesi said.
The professionals said the absence of clarity limits counties ability to validate or challenges the outcome and weakens the redistributive potential.
They said a hybrid system the group is proposing keeps the simple and more predictable structure introduced in the fourth basis, while improving fairness.
“It also reduces the population weight to a more balanced range of 30-35 per cent, aligning with global equity practices and integrates regional priorities such as the blue economy,” Mwakesi said.
He said the hybrid system also establishes a forward-looking equalization framework to support development in counties historically left behind.
