Controller of Budget Margaret Nyakang’o has raised concerns about how the government is wasting money through unnecessary spending, especially on travel and fees paid for loans that are not even in use.
While speaking to the National Assembly committee on public debt and privatization, she said that if the government does not reduce non-essential expenses, the country will face a serious financial crisis. She noted that reducing things like unnecessary foreign and local trips can help lower the budget deficit and reduce the burden of paying back debts. According to her, the focus should be on how public funds are being spent and not just on collecting revenue.
Nyakang’o highlighted that in the current financial year, more than Ksh.9.5 billion has already been spent on travel alone. She gave a personal example where she travelled to Turkey last year and found a room full of Kenyans attending a conference that could have easily been held in Mombasa.
She questioned the need to spend so much on flying abroad just to do what can be done locally. According to her, this is just one of many examples of how public funds are misused under the excuse of official business.
Another major concern is the payment of commitment fees on loans which are not even being used because of delays and poor planning. In the first nine months of the 2024/25 financial year, Kenya paid Ksh.770.5 million in commitment fees alone.
This means the government is paying money just to hold onto loans that are not ready to be used because those in charge of the projects are not prepared. Nyakang’o said that often, money is already available but the people responsible for the project do not even know it, leading to poor coordination and waste. This poor planning adds more pressure to Kenya’s debt repayment obligations.
Nyakang’o warned that if the government keeps spending money carelessly and taking more loans without proper planning, the country could end up defaulting on its debt.
However, she believes that things can improve if proper financial measures are taken. She suggested that if the government adopted a Treasury Single Account (TSA), it would lead to huge savings and reduce the need for borrowing. This, she says, is one of the ways to fix the current situation.
She also pointed out that government salaries, allowances and miscellaneous expenses are going up, from Ksh.4.08 billion to Ksh.4.67 billion.
At the same time, the government is not keeping up with pension payments. Only Ksh.115 billion was disbursed out of the Ksh.223 billion that was set aside.
Nyakang’o said that even when the Kenya Revenue Authority collects enough money for things like pensions, the funds are often diverted through emergency requests allowed under article 223, which lets ministries spend outside the budget without following the normal approval process.
