Devolved units will get Sh316.5 billion this financial year, the Intergovernmental Budget and Economic Council (IBEC) meeting chaired by Deputy President William Ruto resolved.
The meeting agreed that the figure, which is equivalent to last year’s, was arrived at after depressed collections in the country.
Speaking during an IBEC meeting at Karen on Tuesday , Commission on Revenue Allocation (CRA) Chairperson Jane Kiringai said the National government would retain a reduced figure of Sh1.54 trillion.
“Based on the continued under-performance of ordinary (shareable) revenue, the budget committee of IBEC recommends that the allocations to each level of government be maintained at the financial year 2019/2020,” she said.
The CRA boss said the commission was aware that the financial year 2020/2021 division of revenue was being made in a constrained fiscal framework owing to the depressed revenue, high debt repayment and rising wage bill.
Ms Kiringai noted that the Commission was in agreement with the budget committee of IBEC that the shareable revenue to each level of government in the financial year 2020/2021 be maintained at the financial year
2019/2020 levels.
She called on both levels of government to exercise austerity to tame unnecessary expenditures.
DP Ruto asked counties to match their budget to the country’s revenue to ensure that the country does not spend more that it can collect.
“We have lowered our revenue projections so that we try to live within our means. We have been projecting resources that we cannot collect,” he added.
At the same time, the Council of Governors agreed to meet the Controller of Budget to resolve the stalemate on the release of funds.
Dp Ruto called on the relevant stakeholders to address issues that hinder the management of pending bills.
