Random hiring pushes City Hall’s salaries to the red line
By Alvin.Mwangi, January 10, 2023Nairobi County Government has in the last three years hired more than 1,800 employees, pushing City Hall further into the recurrent expenditure red line.
According to statistics obtained by People Daily, City Hall currently has 13,422 staff up from 11,603 in 2019.
A November 2019 biometric report placed the number of employees at 11,603, with 5,709 of them aged 50 years and above and only 792 of them being below 35.
City Hall has been spending more than Sh12 billion annually on personnel emoluments, which is well over the 35 per cent ceiling required under the Public Finance Management (PFM) Act.
Governor Johnson Sakaja, who acknowledged the hiring, said high wage costs continue to undermine the county’s fiscal responsibilities, fearing that the cost could increase further to Sh18.1 billion in the Financial Year ending on June 30, 2023.
“The Nairobi City County wage bill is currently above the recommended expenditure, at 46 per cent, in contravention of the Public Finance Management Act, 2012,” he said.
Hiring comes amidst dismal revenue collection with the county government averaging Sh10 billion annually in its own source revenue.