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Nairobi at bottom of county cash list


Nairobi is among counties that will get the lowest amount from devolved funds in proportion to their populations, according to the Revenue Bill, 2014.

Nairobi county will receive the second lowest allocation in the country.

Despite getting the highest overall allocation of Sh11 billion, Nairobi county has the lowest per capital at Sh3,505 for its 3.1 million residents, which is likely to raise concerns as majority of them live in slums that lack basic facilities like electricity, water and sewerage.

Nairobi Governor Evans Kidero has already raised charges for the residents, saying, the amounts allocated last year could not meet the county’s requirements.

The per capita allocation measures how much money each person in a county would get if the money was to be shared out equally.

In development terms, a county like Nairobi, with a per capita allocation of Sh3,505 will spend less on development projects per person compared with a county like Isiolo which has a per capita allocation of Sh18,145, the highest in the proposed allocations to be released in the next financial year. 

The Bill proposes that Isiolo be allocated Sh2.6 billion. Although this sum will be lower than the Sh11 billion allocated to Nairobi, Isiolo will be in a position to spend more of its revenue per person because it has a bigger land area and a lower population than Nairobi.

Isiolo has 143,294 people according to 2009 census.

Under the current revenue-sharing formula, 45 per cent of the devolved funds is shared on population basis, 25 per cent equally among the 47 counties and 20 per cent according to poverty levels in respective counties.

Another eight per cent and two per cent are allocated on the basis of land mass and fiscal responsibility.

Share their views

The Commission on Revenue Allocation is seeking public views on crafting a new cash allocation formula.

“This will inform the preparation of the second generation revenue sharing formula to be used for the next five financial years,” a statement calling for the public to share their views said.

The figures show that more money per person will go to residents in arid and semi-arid areas, uplifting the general living standards of the population there by providing social amenities like roads, energy and water, which is one of the objectives of the devolved funds.