Ndegwa Njiru flags emergency fund withdrawal as hunger bites in North-Eastern counties
By Faith Lagat, January 10, 2026Advocate Ndegwa Njiru has claimed Ksh43.5 billion has been withdrawn from the National Treasury under emergency funding, as a severe drought continues to devastate lives and livelihoods in northeastern Kenya.
In a post shared on X on January 10, 2026, Njiru questioned the government’s fiscal priorities, drawing attention to the worsening humanitarian crisis in arid and semi-arid lands (ASAL) counties while large sums are disbursed from public coffers.
Emergency fund withdrawal
Njiru’s criticism centres on the Treasury’s approval of additional funding during the 2025/26 financial year, released as emergency or supplementary allocations without full parliamentary oversight.
“Your 43.5 billion shillings has mysteriously been withdrawn from the treasury. The money has been withdrawn under the category of the emergency funds. In the meantime, women and children in Garissa, Wajir, Mandera, Marsabit, and Isiolo continue to die of hunger and starvation,” he wrote.
“While the drought is ravaging livestock in these counties, their MPs are busy building malls in Eastleigh and collapsing apartments in South C. Nani ataokoa watu wa Northeastern? Hawa wabunge, maseneta and the governors ni haram.“
Drought crisis in ASAL counties
The funding controversy comes amid an intensifying drought across northeastern Kenya, driven by below-average October–December short rains, worsened by La Niña conditions and a negative Indian Ocean Dipole.
The drought has severely depleted water sources, pasture and household food reserves. Food security assessments project that at least 2.1 million people in ASAL counties will face crisis-level hunger, classified as IPC Phase 3 or above, between October 2025 and January 2026, with the situation likely to extend into early 2026.
Women and children remain the most affected, facing rising levels of malnutrition, displacement and heightened competition for scarce water and grazing resources, increasing the risk of communal tensions.
MPs renew calls for national disaster declaration
In December 2025, Northeastern MPs led by Eldas MP Adan Keynan held a press briefing in Parliament urging the government to immediately declare the drought a national disaster.
“The October–December short rains have performed far below normal, worsened by La Niña and a negative Indian Ocean Dipole. These patterns have produced higher temperatures and very little rainfall. Current food security assessments indicate that at least 2.1 million people in ASAL counties were projected to face crisis-level hunger between October and January 2026,” Keynan said.
Mandera West MP Yussuf Adan warned, “This situation demands urgent action. Every year, we talk about budgets, but now lives are at stake. The government must declare drought a national disaster immediately. If nothing is done, people will die; we are staring at mass casualties.”
Wajir North MP Saney Ibrahim Abdi added, “The government’s first duty is to protect lives. I don’t understand why we should be appealing for emergency measures when the patterns repeat themselves. Proper funding for the National Disaster Management Authority is essential.”