NAIROBI- The Senate Standing Committee on Finance and Budget and the Commission on Revenue Allocation (CRA) have agreed to maintain continuous engagement to align revenue projections and ensure that recommendations passed by the Senate for the 2027/2028 Financial Year survive the legislative process without bottlenecks.
Meeting earlier today at a Nairobi hotel, both institutions agreed on the critical need to safeguard devolution, address pending bills, protect non-discretionary payroll expenses, and guarantee the timely release of conditional grants and the Equalisation Fund.
Highlighting the importance of early consensus, CRA Chairperson Mary Chebukati emphasized the constitutional basis of the Commission’s mandate, stating, “Article 201 of the Constitution requires that revenue raised nationally should be shared equitably between the national and county government.”
The CRA boss noted that shareable revenue is projected to grow by 8.12 percent to Ksh3.24 trillion for the 2027/2028 financial year, translating to a maximum revenue increment of Ksh263.5 billion.
Based on these projections, the Commission recommended an allocation of Ksh2.79 trillion to the national government, Ksh440.84 billion to county governments as equitable share, and Ksh10.25 billion to the Equalisation Fund.
CRA further recommended that Universal Health Coverage (UHC) staff remuneration continue as a conditional grant of Ksh8.86 billion until the basis for revenue sharing is formally reviewed.
In the 2025/2026 financial year, county governments were allocated Ksh415 billion, which rose to Ksh428 billion for the current 2026/2027 financial year.
CRA underscored that the proposed figures for the medium term, including projected shareable revenues of Ksh2.98 trillion in 2026/2027 and Ksh3.24 trillion in 2027/2028, represent macroeconomic projections rather than final determinations, serving as a baseline framework to guide ongoing legislative consultations.
Setting a firm tone on fiscal accountability, the Finance Committee Chairperson and Mandera Senator Ali Roba raised concerns over county financial management and the transition to programme-based budgeting.
“The elephant that has created massive misappropriation, mismanagement, and misdirection of funds is the programme-based budget for county government,” Senator Roba observed, challenging the Commission to evaluate whether programme-based budgeting has delivered better results than itemized budgets.
He stressed that the lack of line-item visibility has facilitated budget misuse and weakened public participation.
Rallying the meeting around equitable resource distribution, Kakamega Senator Boni Khalwale, a member of the committee, underscored the central role of devolution in driving national unity and development.
“I am so proud of what devolution has managed to do in the counties. We now have to approach the next election with only one thing on mind, equitable share of resources” Senator Khalwale submitted, adding, “If only we can replace our political culture with a conversation that rotates around devolution.”
The consultative meeting provided a vital platform for the legislators and the commissioners to interrogate key macroeconomic assumptions, public debt securitization, and pending bill frameworks.
The Finance Committee reaffirmed the Senate’s commitment to protecting the financial integrity of county governments.
