- With barely a month to the end of the financial year, the National Treasury is yet to release Sh98 billion to the county governments.
- Documents obtained by the Star show that the devolved units have received Sh287.14 billion as of Thursday.
Image: FILE
With barely a month to the end of the financial year, the National Treasury is yet to release Sh98 billion to the county governments.
Documents obtained by the Star show that the devolved units have received Sh287.14 billion as of Thursday.
This is out of a total allocation of Sh385.42 billion for the current financial year.
The outstanding disbursements are for April, May and June, as shown in the cash disbursement status report obtained by the Star from the office of the Controller of Budget.
The delayed disbursements have threatened to disrupt crucial operations and delivery of services by the counties.
On Thursday, the Treasury released Sh20.78 billion to clear arrears for March. The day before, Sh10.05 billion was released to cater for some 17 counties for March.
Among the counties that received the cash are Baringo (Sh558.23 million), Bomet (Sh888.95 million), Elgeyo Marakwet (Sh384.11 million) and Isiolo (391.92 million).
Others are Kajiado (Sh664.01 million), Kakamega (Sh1.03 billion), Kirinyaga (Sh433.61 million), Kitui (Sh686.72 million), Laikipia (Sh428.65 million) and Kwale Sh686.74 million).
Narok (Sh735.70 million), Samburu (Sh447.54 million), Siaya (Sh581.04 million), Taita Taveta (Sh403.23 million), Tharaka Nithi (Sh350.25 million), Uasin Gishu (Sh674.08 million) and West Pokot (Sh525.90 million) also received the disbursement.
The revelations lift the lid on the cash flow challenges in government.
Ideally, by now, the Treasury would have released the entire Sh385.42 billion equitable share to the devolved units.
The law requires that funds be disbursed by the 15th of the current month.
However, this has not been the case, with the Treasury delaying the disbursements for up to four months.
Governors have often lamented the late exchequer release that has hampered the effective delivery of services to Kenyans.
“The situation on the ground is dire, we have never been here. I have been a minister and a governor for 5 years,” Council of Governors chairperson Anne Waiguru said last year.
“We have never had this kind of backlog before but we are hopeful that with the interventions of treasury,” she added.
CoG Finance committee chairman Fernandes Barasa (Kakamega) questioned the delays.
“We can’t resolve the issues facing counties in terms of stalled projects if we haven’t sorted out the pending payment. Our issues are not with the conditional grant but the equitable share,” Barasa said.
Kisii Governor Simba Arati said the delays in disbursement have led to stalling of key development projects in the counties.
“I have never paid for any work done; any money I am getting I have to use to pay salaries. The big problem is in Treasury; as long as they delay funds, there will be no development,” Arati said.
The National Treasury cites cash flow challenges caused by underperforming revenues and huge public debt obligations for the delayed releases.
“The delay in disbursement of funds to counties has been occasioned by a shortfall in revenue collection as well as high public debt obligations,” Treasury CS Njunguna Ndung'u told MPs last year.
But counties have also been on the spot for underperforming own-source revenues that have triggered their overreliance on the national cake.
Image: FILE