The Council of Governors (CoG) has raised concerns that the rollout of the government’s electronic procurement system (e-GP) has disrupted county operations and slowed the delivery of essential services.

The leaders say the system has introduced more barriers instead of improving efficiency, leaving some counties unable to pay workers on time or purchase critical supplies.

Speaking on Monday, September 29, 2025, during the 28th Ordinary Session of the Intergovernmental Budget and Economic Council (IBEC) in Karen, Nairobi, CoG Chairman Ahmed Abdullahi said the transition to e-procurement was poorly planned. He explained that many counties have struggled to integrate the new system into their operations, resulting in delays in spending and budget implementation.

This comes days after the National Treasury was urged to fast-track e-procurement and release funds meant for county governments.

Abdullahi noted that while automation is not opposed, the rollout of the e-GP was rushed and not supported with adequate training or preparation. He warned that this has created widespread disruptions that now threaten service delivery in health, sanitation, and other key sectors.

“This quarter has been disastrous. We have not been able to spend money at all on account of the challenges that we’ve had,” Abdullahi told the meeting, which was also attended by Deputy President Kithure Kindiki.

The CoG chair went further to caution that the government may eventually have to admit the system was not rolled out in the right way.

“But Your Excellency, we feel that this EGP thing, along the road you people will either realise that you are not given the full picture and would ask to revise it or it will be implemented with pain that was not necessary,” Abdullahi said.

Counties struggle with service delivery

Governors pointed out that hospitals have been forced to go without important supplies because counties cannot make emergency purchases under the new system. They added that some fuel suppliers have cut off municipalities, making it impossible to collect garbage in several towns.

“Our municipalities, if they don’t get fuel for two days, all the garbage is placed on the roads and it becomes impossible to even visit our towns,” Abdullahi explained.

In addition, counties face delays in salary payments for staff due to errors in the Integrated Financial Management Information System (IFMIS), which works alongside e-GP. According to the CoG chair, some budgets were wrongly mapped in IFMIS, leaving governors unable to release money for wages.

“I know governors here who are unable to pay salaries because the mapping of their budget in IFMIS was done wrongly and they were frozen. There are governors who up to today have not been able to pay salaries,” he said.

The governors stressed that the current challenges have also reduced the ability of counties to absorb development funds, weakening the economy. They called for urgent reforms to streamline the system and align it with constitutional requirements.

Although the CoG welcomed automation in public finance, Abdullahi warned that unless the rollout is reviewed, counties will continue to face unnecessary hardships. He asked the national government to work closely with counties to resolve the problems at the Intergovernmental Budget and Economic Council level.