This archive report was first published on 9 December 2019.
Kenya's development funds have taken the biggest hit in the second supplementary budget cuts, with a reduction of KSh18.8 billion.
According to the Parliamentary Budget Committee (PBC), KSh2.02 billion was cut from the State Department of Infrastructure, which will now receive KSh5.2 billion from the KSh73.1 billion supplementary budget.
Despite the country facing a ballooning wage bill, the PBC only cut recurrent expenditure by KSh14 million.
Other areas that faced significant cuts include power distribution and transmission, which lost KSh2.1 billion, as well as the water and sanitation ministry, Health, and Education.
The Ministry of Water lost KSh942 million, Health lost KSh300 million, and Education lost KSh65 million. Additionally, the budget committee slashed development funds for the Ministry of ICT by KSh200 million.
These cuts in development expenditure have faced significant opposition from economic experts, who argue that they go against IMF recommendations.
“IMF wants Kenya to sustainably cut its high wage bill that forms the bulk of its recurrent expenditure, putting pressure on development budget,” a Treasury official told The Star in 2019.
