There is a fresh push by governors to compel the National Government to pass all money bills, that is, the County Revenue Allocation Bill, the Division of Revenue Allocation Bill, and the County Governments Additional Allocation Bill, as they say the norm as is disadvantaging the devolved units and hampering development.
Taking issue with the County Governments Additional Allocation Act passed by President William Ruto earlier this month, the Governors believe the set-up is locking out counties from implementing donor-funded projects.
Up to now, the funds, running into billions of shillings, touching on different projects in Agriculture, health and education, are left in limbo as the money is yet to be released.
The council of governors chairperson, Ahmed Abdulahi, says all bills touching on devolving funds to counties must be passed in both houses at the same time to avoid scenarios where donor funds, which are mostly under the county governments’ additional allocation bill, are released towards the end of the financial year.
Speaking during a sensitisation meeting for governors on the Second Kenya Devolution Support Program (KDSP II) in Naivasha, the Council of Governors accused the treasury of delaying the disbursements and being in cahoots with MPs.
The Governors also want development partners to engage counties directly through the Council of Governors, accusing the National Government of introducing bottlenecks that largely delay implementation.
Consequently, the governors say the National Government, since it insists it is pro-devolution, has not given much impetus to the growth of the devolved units.
The World Bank has also taken issue with the delays in disbursement, arguing that it affects their plan, which sometimes sees a slowdown in investment from donors.
Accordingly, the CoG wants a paradigm shift in how the County Governments Additional Allocations Act (CGAA) is implemented, accusing the treasury of a consistent delay in releasing funds.
