On Friday, the Senate passed an additional Ksh50.5 billion to counties to cater for, among other things, the completion of the construction of county headquarters in five counties that have remained incomplete for nearly a decade.
Senators passed the allocation of Ksh532 million to Nyandarua, Tana River, Tharaka Nithi, Isiolo, and Lamu counties as supplementary funds for the construction of the headquarters. This was after the government scrapped a Ksh444 million allocation towards counties for construction in the 2024/25 financial year.
Under the County Governments Additional Allocations Bill, 2025, Senators approved the allocation of more funds to counties that have decried revenue shortages and delayed payments to some workers.
The additional allocation is intended to assist counties whose headquarters, some of which began construction nearly a decade ago, remain incomplete and are plagued by delays, cost overruns, and funding shortfalls.
Nyandarua, for instance, began construction in March 2017 with a budget of Ksh617.6 million but remains incomplete due to disputes between the county and the contractor, with an additional Ksh83.5 million spent on cost fluctuations.
In Tana River, where construction began several years ago, Ksh622.08 million was allocated, but the project is only 55 per cent complete due to contractor termination and retendering issues.
Tharaka Nithi’s headquarters, which commenced in July 2015 with a budget of Ksh366.82 million, has stalled due to design changes and cost variations, despite financial contributions from both county and national governments. Isiolo’s, on the other hand, started in March 2019 with a Ksh556.9 million budget, but delays in national government disbursements have left it unfinished, with Ksh171.05 million released so far.
Lamu’s headquarters, which began in 2015 with a budget of Ksh195.21 million, has also stalled, with completion now pushed to at least September 2025 due to delays in mechanical works subcontracting.
The projects were supposed to be completed through a 70-30 funding model between the national and county governments, but Treasury budget cuts have slowed progress.
At the same time, the Senate approved an additional allocation of Ksh3.2 billion to all 47 counties, which is set to be used to cater for the Community Health Promoters (CHPs). CHPs, who are part of the government’s Universal Healthcare plan, have been up in arms over delays in the payment of stipends.
They are far from the only ones. County health workers have downed tools in various counties, including Garissa and Nandi, over delayed salaries.
The Senate has allocated Ksh1.759 billion for the payment of basic salary arrears for county government health workers. Additionally, 19 counties will receive Ksh2 billion for the County Aggregation and Industrial Parks (CAIPs) programme.
