Counties face strain despite state support
Counties remain trapped in a financial struggle despite billions of shillings pumped into them since 2013.
Counties across the country remain trapped in a financial struggle despite billions of shillings pumped into them since 2013.
They face ongoing challenges such as rising wage bills, unpredictable funds from the National Treasury, and poor efforts in raising their income.
These problems have led to many counties failing to deliver basic services and halting important development projects.
"The intention is to have the counties generate their revenue, enough for development. But today, even giant counties such as Nairobi, Mombasa and Kisumu cannot stand on their own," said governance expert Javas Bigambo.
Since devolution began, counties have received over Sh4.7 trillion from the national government, yet they continue to experience financial shortages that make it difficult to maintain operations.
County leaders often warn about potential service stoppages due to insufficient cash. The root causes of this ongoing financial instability are deep and complex.
A major issue is the ever-growing wage bill that many counties cannot sustain.
Several government watchdogs, including the Auditor General, the Salaries and Remuneration Commission (SRC), the Controller of Budget, and the Senate, have pointed out irregularities such as excessive hiring, inflated staff numbers, and ghost workers on payrolls.
A recent report by the Senate Public Accounts Committee, based on the Auditor General’s audit for the 2023–24 financial year, found that 36 counties spent more than the allowed 35% of their revenue on wages.
Kisii County was the highest, with 60% of its revenue going to salaries alone. Governor Simba Arati’s audit found 861 ghost workers in county departments.
The report further shows that only 11 counties respected the wage bill ceiling, while 16 counties used over half of their revenue to pay salaries, leaving little money for other expenses like operations and development.
Mombasa County spent 57% of its revenue on wages, while Laikipia and Elgeyo Marakwet each used 55%.
Other counties with high wage ratios include Nyeri (55%), Murang’a (54%), Homa Bay and Nyamira (53% each), Kisumu, Taita Taveta, Machakos (52% each), and Kericho, Bomet, Meru, and Tharaka Nithi (50%).
According to the Public Finance Management Regulations for counties, no county should spend more than 35% of its revenue on salaries.
However, the SRC’s recent wage bulletin for the second quarter of the 2024–25 financial year reveals that 41 counties breached this limit.
Only six counties, Kilifi, Tana River, Busia, Narok, Nakuru, and Kwale, stayed within the set wage-to-revenue ratio.
Kilifi led compliance at 26.2%, followed by Tana River at 29.4%, Busia at 31%, Narok at 32%, Nakuru at 33%, and Kwale at exactly 35%.
This shows that a small number of counties are managing their wage bills better, but the majority are still struggling.
This chronic financial instability points to a system-wide failure to control spending and improve revenue collection.
Despite the warnings from various oversight bodies about ghost workers and irregular hiring, few countries have taken effective steps to solve these problems.
