Kenya's Budget 2020/21; Pending Bills

National Treasury CS Ukur Yattani reads his first budget statement today, Thursday 11, giving the outlook for the FY2020/21. He will be presenting a Ksh2.7 trillion budget whose Ksh1.8 trillion expenditures far outweigh the projected meager revenues of Ksh1.6 trillion.

Parliament’s Departmental Committees in their submission on the BUDGET2020/21 estimates reveal mounting pending bills. Departmental committees revealed that the issue of pending bills continues to persist despite the government’s commitment to clear all pending bills early this year. Departmental Committees of the National Assembly review budget proposals for each ministry.

Actually, the Budget Appropriation Committee (BAC) says that there are many pending bills that have no proposed budgetary provisions.

HARDEST HIT MINISTRIES

Transport, Public Works & Housing Ministry

The ministry says that the pending bills arising from the operations of the Standard Gauge Railway (SGR) have accumulated to Ksh38 billion. BAC worries that this may force the operator to pull out of the daily operations of the project.

Further, the State Department of Public Works says that it is grappling with a huge portfolio of STALLED government project due to lack of budgetary allocation.

Agriculture & Livestock Ministry

The State Department for crop development & Agricultural research has pending bills amounting to Ksh12.355 billion. The pending bills consist of:

•Ksh43 million relating to FY2018/19 owed to various suppliers such as office furniture and fitting (Ksh29M), Purchase of computer and IT equipment (Ksh9.066M), and General office supplies (Ksh4.884M).
•Historical pending bills for FY2017/18 for the fertilizer subsidy program under KCB bank facility amounting to Ksh8.348 billion.
•Historical pending bills for the FY2016/17 and 2017/18 owed to maize millers and traders amounting to Ksh3.964 billion.

Education & Research Ministry

Data from the Education ministry reveals that several public universities have accumulated pending bills amounting to Ksh19 billion on account of non-remittance of statutory deductions such as PAYE. These include;