House committee slashes Executive budget

The Budget and Appropriations Committee has reviewed the Budget Estimates to align expenditure levels with realistic resource projections. [File, Standard]

MPs have revised the Ruto government’s Sh4.82 trillion national budget for the 2026/27 financial year, reallocating funds away from the presidency to insulate vulnerable sectors and fund grassroots programmes.

The Budget and Appropriations Committee report, tabled before the National Assembly on June 2, formalises notable cuts to the Executive arms following deep public dissatisfaction over lavish spending by the Executive arms in the Ruto administration.

“The committee has reviewed the Budget Estimates to align expenditure levels with realistic resource projections and to contain non-priority expenditure growth,” the Committee stated in its observations, adding that it had “scrutinised and reallocated non-priority expenditures such as administrative costs, towards development and other core priorities.”

State House’s allocation was cut to Sh12.6 billion from Sh16.3 billion in the current fiscal year, a reduction of nearly 23 per cent.

The Executive Office of the President was trimmed to Sh8.8 billion. Meanwhile, the Deputy President’s office suffered a 30 per cent reduction, falling to Sh3.57 billion from Sh5.1 billion.

While the Executive faced austerity, MPs fortified social welfare safety nets to address grievances gathered during nationwide public hearings.

The Youth Enterprise Development Fund (YEDF) which has faced criticism such as “the concentration of services in urban centres” and “delays in loan processing and disbursement” secured an additional Sh300 million.

The committee noted its support for “measures aimed at decentralising YEDF services, including strengthening outreach at the constituency level”.

Child welfare programmes emerged as significant beneficiaries.

The State Department for Children Services received an additional Sh503 million for the Child Welfare Society and Sh50 million for the National Council for Children Services.

The Committee acknowledged that “child protection services and child welfare programmes continue to face significant funding constraints, particularly at the sub-county level”.

Wider social funding provisions were protected, with cash transfers for elder persons maintained at Sh25 billion and allocations for orphans and vulnerable children at Sh8.9 billion.

The Primary Healthcare Fund was anchored at Sh18 billion, while the Emergency, Chronic and Critical Illnesses Fund received Sh4 billion to support Universal Health Coverage.

Education continues to dominate the Ruto government’s resource allocation, taking the single largest share of the budget at Sh781.4 billion.

This includes Sh421.9 billion for the Teachers Service Commission, Sh54.6 billion for free day secondary education, and Sh4.9 billion ring-fenced “for the conversion of 20,000 intern teachers into permanent and pensionable terms”.

Severe blow

Conversely, the national infrastructure drive takes a severe blow.

The State Department for Energy’s development budget was slashed by 63.8 per cent amounting to a Sh32.13 billion reduction compared to the previous annual budget.

MPs warned that the total lack of funding for connectivity programmes under the Rural Electrification and Renewable Energy Corporation “poses a risk to the achievement of universal electricity access and the Government’s 2030 connectivity targets, particularly in marginalised and underserved areas”.

Total spending is projected at Sh4.82 trillion, representing a 2.7 per cent increase from the current fiscal period.

While MPs heavily reallocated funds between ministries to rescue social programmes, they maintained the overall budget ceiling proposed by the National Treasury rather than increasing the total expenditure.

The country’s fiscal deficit is projected to narrow to 5.4 per cent of GDP from 6.4 per cent, a reduction reflecting “the Government’s commitment to fiscal consolidation”.

Interest payments on public debt however continue to crowd out standard development expenditure, rising 11.3 per cent to a staggering Sh1.25 trillion.

Capital expenditure is projected to decline by 3.9 per cent to Sh845.2 billion. The Budget and Appropriations Committee underscored the urgency to “fast-track operationalization of alternative financing such as the National Infrastructure Fund (NIF)” to shield vital public works.

The committee ordered the Auditor-General to perform a comprehensive financial intervention on state-backed workforce programmes.

By December 2026, the Auditor-General must “undertake a special audit of the Public Service Internship Programme’s payroll” to check for inconsistencies and stipend delays. The National Treasury has also been directed to review the regulatory framework of the Petroleum Development Levy to enhance “accountability and reporting”.

Ahead of the 2027 General Elections, the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) received funding top-ups, including Sh9 billion for voter registration and operations, alongside Sh2.8 billion for electoral ICT.

The committee grimly observed that Kenya continues to run “one of the most expensive general elections in the world,” with the total estimated cost of the 2027 poll pegged at Sh74.4 billion.

The budget now moves to a full House vote to pave the way for the passage of the Appropriation Bill. Committee Chairperson Samuel Atandi formally recommended the house adopt the financial allocations, maintaining that the framework manages “fiscal discipline with equitable and efficient allocation of resources.”