Nairobi Governor Johnson Sakaja has said that Nairobi County has been disadvantaged under the current resource-sharing formula despite being the largest contributor to the Gross Domestic Product, contributing an annual amount of 28 billion dollars.

Speaking at a church service in Embakasi on Sunday, February 8, 2026, Sakaja noted that Nairobi County generates about 28 billion dollars in Gross Domestic Product. Sakaja has said that despite this contribution, the county has been suffering under the current resource-sharing formula.

“The GDP of Nairobi is about 28 billion dollars. When you leave it only to the formula in terms of resource sharing, it suffers. Because in that formula, Your Excellency, and I can explain to you, every month we get Ksh1.7 billion. I have 19,000 staff, Ksh 1.5 billion goes to salaries, and Ksh 200 million goes to the assembly. If you leave Nairobi to only that formula, we will just be glorified cashiers,”Sakaja said.

The city governor is now calling on a special funding arrangement to match the city’s economic contribution and growing service demands. He has said that it is not fair for the Nairobi County government to continue receiving the same share as other counties, considering its huge contribution to the economic resources compared to the rest of the counties.

Sakaja has called on the president to consider fastening the special funding formula that has already started to ensure Nairobi can run efficiently as the country’s capital.

Current resource sharing formula

Kenya’s new constitution, which was approved in 2010, devolves powers to the country’s 47 counties. As part of the devolution process, each county government is responsible for providing and delivering services—such as elements of health care and pre-primary education— for its citizens.

In order to help fund the provision of these services, each county will receive funds from Kenya’s central government, and the allocated amount is based on specific weighted criteria. The goal for this new devolved system of government is to improve service delivery and equity in public resource allocation.

The Kenya Devolution and Resource Sharing Calculator shows how the national government is currently allocating resources to the different county governments and allows users to explore the potential impact of changes to the allocation criteria.

Currently, the resources are allocated to counties based on a weighted formula: population, 45 per cent; poverty rate, 20 per cent; land area, 8 per cent; fiscal responsibility, 2 per cent; and a basic equal share of 25 per cent.