President William Ruto has directed the National Treasury to disburse all county personnel salaries by the third day of every month.
While reading a statement on behalf of President Ruto during the 12th National Government and County Governments Coordinating Summit, held on Wednesday, 10 December, at the State House, Nairobi, Deputy President Kithure Kindiki stated that the measure was designed to protect workers from the ongoing cycle of delayed salaries.
Ruto directed the Controller of Budgets to fast-track approvals to ensure counties received their funds without bureaucratic slowdowns.
He also emphasised that county governments were required to pay all statutory deductions by the ninth day of every month, closing loopholes that had previously left workers penalised.
“Subsequently, the county governments shall ensure that all statutory deductions are paid out by the ninth day of every month,” the statement read by the deputy president stated.
The government further committed to covering Community Health Promoters (CHPs) under the Social Health Authority (SHA) insurance scheme, with costs shared equally between national and county governments at Ksh 330 CHP per month for each side.
He added that a framework to transition CHPs to permanent and pensionable terms was to be developed jointly by the Ministry of Health, the Public Service Commission, the Council of Governors (COG), and the National Treasury.
“The Ministry of Health and the Council of Governors shall develop a framework for maternity services at Level 2 and 3 facilities by January 2026,” the DP stated.
The plan indicated that the Primary Health Care Fund would absorb the maternity-related charges under the SHA legal structure.
All existing vendor installation contracts under the National Equipment Support Programme were also cancelled to allow new agreements with new suppliers.
Additionally, the Intergovernmental Relations Technical Committee (IGTRC) was directed to accelerate the unbundling of contested functions for transfer to counties, with the Treasury tasked with verifying related financial resources.
He further directed that sector forum regulations be amended to allow co-chairing by both government levels by January 2026.
On pending bursary agreements, the DP directed that they should be finalised within 14 days, and the treasury to fast-track pending disbursements for county aggregation and industrial parks.
He concluded by saying that the Public Finance Management Amendment Bill would be taken back for further review and consultations.
