GOVERNMENT EXPENDITURE ON TRAVEL EXPENSES UP BY A WHOOPING SH3 BILLION
The travel costs both foreign and local come even as salary payment to government employees hit Sh291.3 billion over the same period of the year.
The government splurged Sh11.4 billion in travelling expenditure in the first six months of the current financial year- 2023/23 according to the Office of the Controller of Budget (OCoB) in a document before parliament.
The expenditure is a huge increase from the Sh8.11 billion recorded during a similar period in the last financial year- 2022/23, is against President William Ruto’s directive that state and public officers cut down on non-essential travel expenditures to save and channel resources to critical services.
The travel costs both foreign and local come even as salary payment to government employees hit Sh291.3 billion over the same period of the year.
This even as the government continues to face challenges raising revenue to finance its operations with the tax revenue missing the set targets by the National Assembly and as approved by parliament.
The document presented before the Budget and Appropriations Committee (BAC) of the National Assembly shows that the government spent Sh7.67 billion on domestic travel and Sh3.71 billion on foreign travel with Sh12.48 billion as the cost of insurance.
Rent and rates on non-residential buildings accounted for Sh4.3 billion, specialized materials and supplies Sh4.92 billion while hospitality was Sh2.91 billion.
The document indicates that during the same period the total grants to government Ministries Departments and Agencies (MDAs) also increased.
In December 2023, the National Treasury issued austerity measures for MDAs slashing allowances for official travel as it banned non-essential lunch, tea and water for civil servants to save the country unnecessary expenditures.
The revelations come against the push by the leader of minority in the National Assembly Opiyo Wandayi to have the government cut down non-essential domestic and international travel to save resources for critical interventions in the “healthcare and education among others.”
Mr Wandayi also wants the government to freeze ministerial out -of- station allowances, ministerial house allowances and domestic allowance for Cabinet Secretaries and Principal Secretaries to stop wastages.
“The government gobbles up billions of shillings every month in unnecessary and unproductive local and foreign travels. This must be addressed,” said Mr Wandayi.
The acquisition of domestic loans to other levels of government, financial institutions, to individuals and households and domestic lending and on-lending reported Sh390.74 billion within the first six months of the current year with the judiciary recording the highest at Sh264.02 billion.
At least Sh2.7 billion was spent by the MDAs on refurbishment of buildings, purchase of vehicles and other transport equipment, furniture and general equipment, purchase of specialized plant equipment and machinery.
Under this category, the State House splurged Sh566.68 million, the highest, followed by the National Police Service (NPS) at Sh477.17 million.
The CoB document reveals that during the same period, grants reported by MDAs hit Sh346.6 billion, representing 46.1 percent of the MDAs gross recurrent expenditure.
For instance, at Sh173.34 billion, the Ministry of Defense reported highest transfers of grants followed by Basic Education Sh72.77 billion, State department for Roads at Sh29.08 billion, and the National Treasury Sh16.59 billion.
The other transfers and emergency relief was Sh31.91 billion with the State Department for Higher Education and Research reporting the highest transfer of Sh15.03 billion followed by State Department for Social Protection, Pensions and Senior Citizen Affairs at Sh12.83 billion.
The COB also notes that subsidies reported by the MDAs hit Sh27.84 billion, representing 3.7 percent of the gross recurrent expenditure.
The amount was spent under the State Department for Petroleum towards fuel price stabilization programme.
During the same period, the government agencies recorded Sh142.81 billion in pensions and retirement benefits, social security benefits, employer social benefits and gratuities.
Under this category, the State Department for Foreign Affairs recorded the highest at Sh29.24 billion.
