Nairobi City County workers are grappling with salary delays for the month of March in a setback that has been attributed to delays in the release of funds from the National Treasury.
In a circular obtained by Kenyans.co.ke, county workers were informed of the hold-up, which the county claimed was largely due to delays in the disbursement of equitable share funds.
As per the circular, Nairobi County was heavily dependent on the disbursement of equitable share by the National Treasury, which complements the county's own source revenue to sustain operations and subsequently pay its workers.
“There has been a delay in the disbursement of the equitable share, the last disbursement received being for January 2025,” part of the circular read.
Further, the county expressed regret over the inconvenience, reiterating that workers would only be paid their March dues once funds are received from the Treasury.
The circular added: “In this regard, we regret to inform you that salaries for March 2025 will be delayed pending equitable share disbursement. We await action by the National Treasury to honour its constitutional and legal obligation to release equitable share on time, every month."
In the current financial year ending in June, Nairobi County is expected to receive a total of Ksh20.85 billion from the national government, that is, on top of the Ksh12.8 billion collected last year in own-source revenue.
County workers were urged to remain committed to their duties despite the potential impact the salary delays could have on staff.
Kenyans.co.ke has since learnt that amid the setback, several departments within the county government have maintained normal operations, with staff remaining motivated in light of the salary delay announcement.
“Our department is ok, and staff are motivated to work, for they have been made to understand about the ongoing delay in salary due to unavoidable circumstances,” a source exclusively told Kenyans.co.ke.
The latest setback from the Nairobi County comes at a time when there is scrutiny on how counties spend their equitable share funds, which are critical for service delivery and staff remuneration.
Notably, the two Houses of Parliament – the Senate and the National Assembly – are embroiled in a tussle after the National Assembly recently rejected a move by governors seeking to increase the county government's equitable share of revenue to Ksh536.8 billion.
The proposed Division of Revenue Bill by the Budget and Appropriations Committee recommended the approval of Ksh405.1 billion as the equitable share, with Ksh10.58 billion allocated for the equalisation fund, despite the push by the CoG to have the equitable share increased.
