Sigh of relief as Treasury releases funds

Members of Parliament (MPs) and parents can now breath a sigh of relief after the National Treasury released a total of Sh8.7 billion to the National Government Constituencies Development Fund (NG-CDF), and another Sh10 billion for bursaries.

Each of the 290 constituencies will receive Sh30 million with the balance coming before the end of this month.

The National Assembly’s Select Committee on NG-CDF chairman Musa Sirma confirmed the release of the money, adding that the remaining amount will be disbursed within the set timelines.

“The money was sent on Monday, members can now access their accounts as they wait for the remaining amount before the end of the month,” Sirma told People Daily in an interview. “We acknowledge that there has been a delay but that is now behind us. Members should without delay start utilising the money, especially paying for bursaries.”

Finance and Planning Committee chairman Kimani Kuria also confirmed that the NG-CDF money had been released.

“The money has already hit the accounts, each of the constituencies have received Sh30 million with the poor ones going by the poverty index receiving Sh40 million,” said the Molo MP.

President William Ruto had last week announced that Sh10 billion had been released to support constituency bursaries.

Each of the 290 constituencies is allocated Sh137 million every financial year. In the current year, Sh 53.5 billion was allocated to NG-CDF by the Treasury.

The Allocation to NG-CDF Board is Sh 2.7 billion therefore Constituencies’ shareable allocation is Sh50.9 billion. Seven constituencies are set to receive the highest allocation of Sh201.7 million while the lowest will receive Sh 157.8 million.

Ordinary revenue

The NG-CDF Act provides that the government set aside at least 2.5 percent of its ordinary revenue for disbursement under the program. Three-quarters of the amount is divided equitably between the 290 constituencies whilst the remaining quarter is divided based on a poverty index to cater for poorer constituencies.

Sirma emphasised the significance of prudent resource management and transparent allocation processes.

“Our primary focus is to enhance the well-being of citizens in all constituencies and foster sustainable development. Through this meeting, we aim to ensure that the budget ceiling is optimised to address the diverse needs of our communities and foster inclusive growth,” said the Eldama Ravine MP.

A section of MPs last week issued a seven-day ultimatum for the Treasury to release the NG-CDF failure to which they would have commenced a process to impeach Cabinet Secretary Njuguna Ndung’u and the Fund’s board.
Speaking after a meeting, the MPs from both the Majority and Minority sides accused the Treasury of using technicalities to delay the disbursement.

Embattled NG-CDF board CEO Yusuf Mbuno had told the MPs last month that only Sh10 billion of the Sh44.2 billion intended to be released will be disbursed.

In a statement read after the meeting by Rarieda MP Otiende Amollo, the MPs warned that should the government fail to release the funds within seven days, they will call for a special sitting to discuss the conduct of the CS and the board.

“There is a CDF memo dated January 2024, directed to all CDF account managers countrywide, directing them that money cannot be released because of certain amendments to the CDF Act,” Amollo stated.
He added; “As such, the National Treasury has refused to release the funds claiming that they were supposed to recall proposals they had made and redo and resubmit.

This comes as some respite to schools who were owed over Sh87 billion for the 2022/23 and 2023/24 financial years before this disbursement.

The National Treasury has also disbursed Sh31.3 billion to constituencies including Sh 4.74 billion for the Free Primary Education program, while another Sh7.6 billion will go towards the Junior Secondary School Capitation Grant.

School examination and invigilation fees will get about Sh2.8 billion, with the Free Senior Secondary Education program getting the lion’s share of Sh16.2 billion.

While the government has eased the burden on schools with the disbursement of Sh31.3 billion, a huge burden remains on the shoulders of learners from poor families who depend on scholarships to pay school fees.

No money has been released to the 290 constituencies since last July, threatening the learning of thousands of vulnerable students. As the fund is disbursed every quarter, the constituencies should have received the third tranche of the money by now.