The Nairobi City County Executive spent KSh 128.4 million on foreign travel in the 2024/25 financial year, the highest among the 47 devolved units, a new report by the Controller of Budget (CoB) shows.
- •The bulk of the expenditure went to training programmes and international conferences attended by county officials.
- •In comparison, Mombasa County spent KSh 76.8 million on foreign travel, while Nakuru County incurred KSh 39.3 million, while other counties such as Vihiga and Isiolo reported spending less than KSh 10 million.
- •The CoB has consistently flagged foreign travel as a major driver of recurrent expenditure in devolved units, warning that counties risk starving development projects of funding.
The Innovation and Digital Economy docket led Nairobi’s spending with KSh 28.4 million, after sending 13 officers to Dubai in May 2025 for certified cybersecurity training.
The Nairobi Revenue Authority followed with KSh 23.4 million, incurred during a December 2024 workshop in Malaysia on revenue automation and governance. Other heavy spenders included the Finance and Economic Planning department (KSh 19.9 million for a Singapore training), the Health, Wellness & Nutrition department (KSh 18.3 million for a Lusaka programme), and the Office of the Deputy Governor (KSh 17.3 million for a Dubai fashion exhibition).
“The persistent prioritisation of non-essential foreign trips over critical local projects undermines fiscal responsibility and service delivery,” the Controller of Budget noted in the report.
The revelations come as Nairobi struggles with a crushing debt load. The county had pending bills of KSh 86.7 billion as of June 2025, accounting for nearly half of the total pending bills across all counties.
