Nairobi: The Council of Governors have praised the financial backing from the second phase of the Kenya Devolution Support Programme (KDSP), which is set to tackle governance issues and hurdles in its execution. This initiative, spanning four years, is being managed and coordinated under the State Department for Devolution, with funding from the World Bank amounting to Sh19 billion (USD150 Million).
According to Kenya News Agency, all 47 counties have already signed participatory agreements, with each county receiving Sh34 million (Euro 234,500) annually as an institutional grant, in addition to millions in investment grants. The programme mandates counties to implement governance reforms and boost their own source of revenue by at least 5 percent annually to facilitate counter-funding for the projects.
Moreover, counties are required to implement strategies to expedite the payment of increasing pending bills and wage bills, with a new human resources system adopted to address this. The programme also focuses on integrating performance management to streamline payroll processes and eliminate ghost workers, which have cost counties billions of shillings.
According to Principal Secretary State Department for Devolution Michael Lenasalon, the funds will enhance the counties’ capacity to accelerate service delivery to citizens. Lenasalon emphasized the need for counties to explore new ways to bolster their revenue sources amid financial constraints.
Council of Governors Chairperson Abdullahi Ahmed commended the World Bank for its support, highlighting the programme’s potential to strengthen transparency, fiscal responsibility, and address human resources and performance management at the county level. Speaking in Naivasha during the project launch, Ahmed stressed the importance of timely fund disbursement, pointing out that delays have adversely affected service delivery.
Ahmed also advocated for the merging of the County Allocation Act and the County Allocation of Revenue Act to ensure seamless fund disbursement and prompt service delivery. COG Deputy Vice Chair Mutahi Kahiga called for a return to a fully-fledged Ministry of Devolution to resolve the challenges facing counties.
Mutahi criticized the current plans to review the Constitution to incorporate the National Government Constituency Development Fund (NGCDF), asserting that MPs should focus on their oversight, legislation, and representation roles, leaving NGCDF implementation to either the National or County Governments. He urged MPs to enhance their oversight of the National Government, which manages a significant portion of the budget, while Governors continue to face scrutiny despite only receiving 15 percent of the national allocation.
Governor Muthomi Njuki highlighted that delayed disbursement of county funds has impaired the performance of devolved units in implementing programmes and projects by 50 percent. Njuki noted that the Senate has yet to release the disbursement schedule for the County Allocation of additional revenues to The National Treasury, even as the financial year draws to a close.
The Tharaka Nithi Governor emphasized that merging the County Allocation Act and County Allocation of Revenue Acts would expedite the release of funds to counties, meeting a key requirement for funding under the KDSP phase two. The programme, building on the success of its first phase from 2016 to 2021, aims to enable counties to institute reforms to address escalating spending budgets, wage bills, and enhance their own revenue sources.
