Push for independent budget as Auditor-General faces rising workload

Auditor-General Nancy Gathungu has called for urgent reforms to the way her office is funded, urging Parliament to speed up the implementation of a Single-Line Budget that would allow it to operate more independently.

Speaking during a session with the Budget and Appropriations Committee, Gathungu said routing all funds through the National Treasury was limiting the office’s ability to respond quickly to special audit requests and address emerging issues.

“This will give the Office some degree of financial independence and facilitate effective and efficient responses in addressing emerging audit issues and in responding to requests by Parliament and County Assemblies for special audits, without having to seek reallocations through the National Treasury,” she told the committee chaired by Samuel Atandi.

Gathungu presented a 2025/26 budget estimate of 8.689 billion shillings for her office, which includes 8.359 billion for recurrent expenses and 330 million for development projects.

The allocation marks an increase of 36.8 million shillings compared to the Budget Policy Statement, following an appeal to both the committee and the Treasury.

“The additional allocation was made following my appeal to this Committee and the National Treasury for increased resources to address the growing audit scope, especially with Public Secondary Schools and TVETs becoming self-accounting,” she said.

While Gathungu welcomed the additional allocation, she cautioned that the broader issue of late Exchequer releases remained unresolved.

She said the trend of releasing funds long after the financial year has ended severely undermines budget implementation across the board.

“As a result of late Exchequer releases, both the National Government and County Governments are left with limited time to absorb the funds,” she said. “There is also a risk of inefficient utilization of resources by entities, leading to wastage of public resources. This disrupts the performance of government programs by slowing down the attainment of development objectives and service delivery to the citizens.”

The committee, in its response, expressed willingness to support reforms that would allow the Auditor-General's Office to manage its finances directly.

The MPs said this would not only boost audit effectiveness but also help Parliament and county assemblies get timely feedback on key financial issues.

The session also included a review of submissions from recent public hearings in eleven counties on the 2025/26 budget estimates.

Lawmakers noted that many of the issues raised echoed the Auditor-General’s concerns, particularly delays in fund disbursement and underfunding of critical sectors.