TSC gets Sh161b for hiring new teachers

the Government has allocated Sh226.7 billion to the 47 county governments

By Jackson Okoth

Kenya: The single largest slice of Government expenditure in the next national budget beginning June this year will go to county governments.

In a move seen by many as supporting devolution, the Government has allocated Sh226.7 billion to the 47 county governments while Sh27.97 billion will go to the Constituency Development Fund (CDF) and Sh3.4 billion to the Equalisation Fund.

The Teachers’ Service Commission (TSC) has the largest share of the national government’s expenditure purse in the 2014/15 national budget, surpassing all other commissions, ministries and State departments.

In the Sh1.13 trillion expenditure purse, TSC has been allocated Sh165.6 billion. A large part of this cash, Sh161 billion, will be used for recruitment of new teachers as well as payment of salaries and allowances.

The Ministry of Transport and Infrastructure is second in the heap of top Government ministries, being allocated Sh123.5 billion; with the railway sector receiving the highest amount at Sh26.2 billion.

This is followed by air transport including expansion of the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA) at Sh12.1 billion. Marine transport, which includes development of the Lamu Port transport corridor and expansion of the Port of Mombasa, has been allocated Sh6.1 billion.

Another Sh19.4 billion has been set aside for construction of the Standard Gauge Railway from Mombasa to Nairobi while Sh3.5 billion will be used to construct a commuter railway transport network for Nairobi and its environs.

The Government plans to spend Sh41 billion to complete construction of new roads, Sh43 billion on foreign financed roads and Sh1.65 billion for upgrading Kisumu and Isiolo airports as well as construction of new airports in Suneka, Mandera and Malindi.

National security

The Ministry of Interior and National Co-ordination is third with an allocation of Sh 99.5 billion, of which Sh3.3 billion will be used to enhance security, Sh2.9 billion to recruit 10,000 regular and Administration police, Sh6.1 billion for Kenya’s operation in Somalia, Sh1.79 billion for anti-poaching activities by the Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) and Sh1.6 billion for the police medical insurance scheme.

The Government plans to spend Sh6.7 billion out of this envelope to lease aircraft and new or used vehicles for the police as well as Sh3.5 billion on police equipment. Some Sh1.3 billion has been allocated for the construction of houses for Administration and regular police, and Sh1.8 billion for a new command and control centre for the police.

Another beneficiary in the 2014/15 national budget is the Ministry of Petroleum and Energy, which has been allocated Sh76.9 billion, of which Sh22.7 billion will go towards power generation and Sh49.3 billion to power transmission and distribution. The ministry will spend Sh2.9 billion on alternative energy technologies while Sh1.6 billion will be used in exploration of oil and gas activities.

The Ministry of Agriculture leads the losers’ list with the least allocation given that nearly 25 per cent of the country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) comes from agriculture. The sector has been allocated Sh29.3 billion, out of which Sh9.5 billion is for expansion and construction of irrigation projects countrywide.

The Witness Protection Agency has the least allocation in the coming budget at Sh169 million, followed by the Kenya National Commission on Human Rights with Sh256 million and the Commission for Implementation of the Constitution at Sh306 million. The Commission on Revenue Allocation (CRA) has been allocated Sh264 million while the National Police Service Commission will receive Sh278 million.

The Ministry of East Africa Community got the least allocation as a ministry, with a paltry Sh1.68 billion, much lower than that of the Ministry of Mining at Sh2.1 billion.