Africa-Press – Kenya. The Council of Governors and the national government are deadlocked over the allocation of shareable revenue in the 2023/24 financial year after a consultative meeting held on Wednesday failed to reach a consensus.
Whereas the governors are demanding Sh425 billion, the national government is stuck at Sh385 billion, being 15 per cent of the projected total revenue collection of Sh2.9 trillion.
The government reached Sh385 billion as a compromise figure following an Intergovernmental Budget and Economic Council (IBEC) meeting chaired by Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua.
The Council of Governors was represented at the meeting by chairperson Anne Waiguru. The meeting came hours after one between the CoG and the Treasury failed to reach an agreement despite the objective recommendation issued by Commission on Revenue Allocation.
“During the consultative meeting, the National Treasury did not form the basis for deviating from the recommendations by CRA,” CoG vice chairperson Ahmed Abdullahi said.
In a brief after the IBEC meeting, Waiguru said the national government had initially proposed Sh380 billion as the share of revenue to devolved units, the equivalent to 14.8 per cent of total revenue.
The Commission on Revenue Allocation (CRA) recommended that counties be allocated Sh407 billion based on counties’ priorities and devolved functions. Article 203(2) of the Constitution gives the minimum threshold on the amount of equitable revenue to be allocated to counties as 15 per cent of the latest audited revenues.
“For every financial year, the equitable share of the revenue raised nationally that is allocated to county governments shall be not less than fifteen per cent of all revenue collected by the national government,” the law says.
In the 2021/2022 Financial Year, county governments received Sh340.4 billion as their equitable share of revenue raised nationally. The amount was equivalent to Sh370 billion in appropriations as per the County Allocation of Revenue Act (CARA) 2021.
As part of its compromise stance, the national government said it is willing to offer an extra Sh90 million to the Intergovernmental Relations Technical Committee (IGTRC) to unbundle and reallocate the funds on agreement with counties.
IGTRC is a body formed by an act of parliament to establish a framework for consultation and cooperation between the National and County Governments and county governments.
Besides the revenue share concerns, Waiguru said CoG raised various other issues at the IBEC meeting which it wants to be addressed by the national government.
They include the increase of funds to the Ministry of Health and Agriculture which are devolved functions and the release of funds for other devolved functions which the national government is still holding unto.
Waiguru said CoG also raised issues with the continued allocation of funds by ministries to non-priority projects which are not aligned with current Kenya priorities. She said governors also want the recommendations by the CRA respected and not dismissed as has been the case over the past ten years.
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