How County Assemblies’ Sitting Allowances Goes Against Austerity Measures

Counties nationwide allocated a sum of Sh1.59 billion for Members of County Assemblies (MCA) sitting allowances during the fiscal year (FY) 2023/24. This expenditure occurred despite the austerity measures introduced by President William Ruto in June, following the fatal Gen-Z protests, which resulted in over 60 deaths.

The report by the Office of the Controller of Budget states that this amount accounts for 85.5 percent of the allocated budget of Sh1.85 billion. Compared to the previous fiscal year, where spending reached Sh1.34 billion, or 79.9 percent of the allocated budget, this shows a notable rise.

The report also underscores the financial difficulties County Assemblies face in managing their budgets.While sitting allowances saw an increase, several factors negatively impacted overall budget execution.

Read: Government Blows Sh1.6 Billion To ‘Count Fish’

These included the National Treasury’s failure to release the June 2024 equitable revenue share, weak performance in own-source revenue generation, and a large volume of pending bills. County Assemblies also faced challenges with overspending on personnel and travel expenses, complicating their ability to prioritize development initiatives.

“The key challenges that adversely affected budget implementation in FY 2023/24 were the National Treasury’s non-disbursement of the June 2024 equitable share of revenue, the underperformance of own-source revenue collection, low expenditure on development programs, a high level of pending bills, high expenditure on personnel emoluments, a delay in submission of financial and non-financial reports to the CoB, the use of commercial bank accounts, and excessive expenditure on travel costs,” the report partially stated.

In June, President Ruto announced that significant budget cuts would target high-level state offices, including devolved units, as part of the austerity measures following the decision to withdraw the Finance Bill.

“We must live within our means, respecting the very loud message that is coming from the people of Kenya. I will have conversations with stakeholders on this matter as we chart our way forward,” the President added.