In a bid to cut down on the foreign travel budget and enhance transparency within the public service, the government on Tuesday, May 21, unveiled a new foreign travel authorization system.
In his announcement, the head of Public Service, Felix Koskei noted the Foreign Travel Management System (FOTIMS) would be used by all government employees seeking to travel abroad.
According to Koskei, the new foreign travel system would help streamline the travel clearance process and enhance proper travel planning among government employees.
"The new system would also ensure compliance with foreign travel policy by all government employees and improve decision-making through better data analysis," he stated.
The head of Public Service further noted the move would lead to a more efficient and cost-effective management of official travel.
While making the announcement, Koskei stated that the new travel management system would be implemented within the next one month.
“I held a session with the Data Protection Commissioner and the Directorate of Remote Sensing to assess the progress of developing the FOTIMS,” Koskei stated.
The system also helps the government record foreign travel done by employees and track approvals of all foreign travel.
The new move comes against the backdrop of the government's efforts to cut exorbitant expenditures by its employees in foreign travel.
A report by the Controller of Budget revealed that the government spent about Ksh3.7 billion on foreign travel for the first half of the 2023/2024 financial year.
The outrageous expenditure followed President William Ruto's sentiments claiming he would reduce the travel budget for both domestic and foreign trips by Ksh11 billion.
In his October 2023 speech in Taita Taveta County, the Head of State directed that travel budgets for all three arms of government be slashed by 50%.
"I saw that the media saying I reduced the budget by Sh500 million. No, it is not 500 million but I have reduced by Sh11 billion for those going on those trips," Ruto stated.
