Assemblies decry delayed funds disbursement to counties

Machakos County Assembly Speaker, Ann Kiusya. [File, Standard]

The delay in the disbursement of equitable share to counties has grounded operations and service delivery in devolved units, County Assemblies Forum deputy chairperson, Ann Kiusya has said.

Ms Kiusya, who is also the Speaker of Machakos County Assembly regretted that the national government had delayed disbursement of funds in the Financial Years 2023/24 and the current Fiscal Year 2024/25.

She said this has severely impacted the operations of the executive and the county assemblies across the country.

Kiusya noted that the Treasury was scheduled to release at least Sh100 billion in equitable share to the 47 county governments to cater for the first quarter of the 2024/25 Financial Year but this has not happened.

"The delay has caused significant interruptions in service delivery, halted development projects and strained relationships between the national and county governments. Under the Constitution, the national government is required to allocate funds, through the County Allocation of Revenue Act, to county governments to ensure smooth operations," Kiusya said after chairing the Assembly Committee on Finance in Machakos.

She said many counties had been rendered technically insolvent and unable to offer basic services to the citizens.

"Despite these allocations, many counties are yet to receive their full share, leading to severe budget shortfalls. In the financial year 2023/24, the disbursement delays spanned several months, with many counties receiving less than their allocated funds by the end of the fiscal year," she said.

Kiusya revealed that payment of staff salaries, support of legislative activities and financing development activities have ground to a halt.

She noted that as of September 2024, some county assemblies, particularly in marginalised regions such as Turkana, Mandera, and Wajir, were still waiting for more than half of their allocated funds from the previous fiscal year.

This has led to financial crisis, leaving them unable to fulfill their mandate.

This comes days, after the Council of Governors (CoG) wrote to the Senate Finance Committee over the delayed disbursements that have led to financial crisis in the counties.

"As of the date of this letter (September 5, 2024) no county has received its July, August and September 2024 allocations on the premise that there is no legal framework for disbursement and no County Allocation of Revenue Act in Place," said CoG.

"We note that the current status has paralyzed the operations of the counties with regard to continuity of service delivery, payment of suppliers, and remuneration of county employees," said the CoG Chief Executive Officer Mary Mwiti in the letter.