Nairobi, 5 Other Counties that Received Highest Money Allocations Since Kenya's Devolution Onset
- Six Kenyan counties have received the highest equitable share allocations since the onset of devolution in 2013
- This is according to the Parliamentary Budget Office (PBO) County Fact Sheets, which revealed the specific allocation per county
- The report also highlighted how much devolved units collected in their own source revenue during the review period
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TUKO.co.ke journalist Japhet Ruto has over eight years of experience in financial, business, and technology reporting and offers deep insights into Kenyan and global economic trends.
Over 25% of the KSh 3.73 trillion distributed to the 47 devolved governments since the beginning of devolution have gone to six counties, highlighting the extreme concentration of wealth in a tiny region of the nation.
Source: Twitter
Wide disparities throughout Kenya were reflected in the fact that between July 2013 and June 2024, remittances to the six counties amounted to 26% of all Exchequer allocations, grants, and own income.
Which Kenyan counties received the highest allocations?
According to the Parliamentary Budget Office (PBO) County Fact Sheets, Nairobi, Kiambu, Turkana, Nakuru, Kakamega, and Mombasa have received a total of KSh 973.5 billion over the past 10 years, making them the major recipients.
"Since the start of devolution, counties have received a total of KSh 3.141 trillion (Equitable Share) as of June 30. Additionally, since the 2013/2014 financial year, the national government has given counties KSh 189.4 billion in additional resources," the report stated.
The 47 counties collected a combined revenue of KSh 403.4 billion.
How much did each county receive?
With KSh 116.7 billion from its own revenues and KSh 177.3 billion from the Exchequer, Nairobi has received KSh 305.7 billion, the most of any county since devolution began.
Source: Twitter
Over the period (2013/14 to 2022/23), the county additionally received KSh 5.5 billion from the national government's share and KSh 12.4 billion from development partners.
Between July 2013 and June 2024, Kiambu got KSh 155.58 billion, of which roughly three-quarters, or 72.5%, came from the National Treasury in the form of national government equitable share revenue.
According to the report, Mombasa received KSh 127.6 billion, Kakamega (KSh 126.37 billion), and Nakuru (KSh 141.13 billion), while nearly all of that amount was their equitable share.
Which counties spent the most on development?
Controller of Budget (CoB) Margaret Nyakang'o provided a breakdown of the public spending in 47 Kenyan counties during the first half of the fiscal year 2024/2025.
Nyakang'o revealed that county governments allocated KSh 33.60 billion for development in the first half of FY 2024/2025, which is 16% of their KSh 211.53 billion annual development budget.
This represented an increase in spending compared to the 12% absorption rate attained during a comparable FY 2023/2024 timeframe.
Counties that had the highest development absorption rates were Mandera (32%), Narok (30%), Garissa (28%), Uasin Gishu (27%) and Marsabit (26%).
On the other hand, Elgeyo-Marakwet, Lamu, Nakuru, and Kitui, with an absorption rate of 5% each, had the lowest development rates.
Proofreading by Asher Omondi, copy editor at TUKO.co.ke.
Source: TUKO.co.ke
