Treasury Cabinet Secretary Njuguna Ndung'u, on Thursday, June 15, detailed how President William Ruto's government would spend the Ksh3.6 trillion budget for the 2023/2024 financial year.
Ndung'u revealed that the government had set a target to collect Ksh2.96 trillion through taxes and grants, with taxes alone constituting Ksh2.57 trillion of the total amount.
Key allocations include;
Education
The Ministry of Education will receive Ksh628 billion, representing 27.4 per cent of the budget.
Among the recipients of the allocated funds, the Junior Secondary School (JSS) capitation received a substantial portion of over half a trillion, amounting to Ksh25.5 billion.
A separate allocation of Ksh5 billion was designated for the school feeding program.
HELB, on the other hand, received Ksh30 billion, an increase from last year's 15 billion.
The government also hopes to hire 20,000 teachers and TVET tutors and construct 21 Kenya Medical Training College KMTC campuses (KMTC).
Health
The Ministry of Health, under CS Susan Nakhumicha, received an allocation of Ksh141 billion, with Ksh18.4 earmarked for Universal Health Coverage (UHC).
The malaria and HIV/AIDS programs also received a substantial amount of Ksh24.8 billion.
Housing Program
With the government keen on rolling out Affordable Housing, Ksh35.2 billion was allocated to Ruto's legacy housing project.
After intense lobbying from various stakeholders and huge outcry from taxpayers, the contribution towards the Housing Levy by both employers and employees was decreased from 3 percent to 1.5 percent. In addition to the Ksh32.5 billion collected through these deductions, Ruto pledged to supplement the funds with an estimated annual amount of Ksh83 billion.
Roads and SGR
An allocation of Ksh244 billion was made by the government for the construction of roads and bridges. Ruto, in his commitment to infrastructure development, pledged to ensure the completion of road projects initiated by Former President Uhuru Kenyatta before presenting his own roadmap for further progress.
From the Ksh244 billion, Ksh7.4 billion will cater for the extension of the Standard Gauge Railway (SGR).
Security
The government allocated Ksh338. 2 billion for security-related ministries and agencies.
A substantial allocation of Ksh144.9 billion was made to the Kenya Defence Forces (KDF), while the National Intelligence Service (NIS) received Ksh44.3 billion.
The National Police Service (NPS) was allocated Ksh98.6 billion with another Ksh8.8 billion going towards the leasing of police vehicles.
Agriculture
To achieve its pledge to lower the cost of food, the government allocated Ksh5 billion to the Fertiliser Subsidy Program.
This aligns with the president's broader food security strategy. After assuming office, Ruto reduced the price of fertilizer from Ksh7,000 to Ksh3,500 and wooed investors to build fertilizer manufacturing plants in the country.
The President also pledged to shift the nation from overdependence on rain-fed agriculture to irrigation.
Hustler Fund
The Kenya Kwanza administration allocated Ksh10 billion to Ruto's Hustler Fund.
Other Key highlights
Ksh25 billion will be used to clear arrears for unpaid oil subsidies, a program initiated by President Uhuru Kenyatta.
Ksh3 billion will be used to complete the construction of 181 stalled markets initiated in 2008.
Counties will receive Ksh4.7 billion as conditional grants to establish industrial parks.
The construction of the Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) in Nairobi County was allocated Ksh1.1 billion.
Ksh856 million was allocated to National Forensic Laboratory to help in the government's plan of equipping the facility.
The government also allocated Ksh13.1 billion to the National Youth Service (NYS).
