Governors protest Sh405 billion county allocation, threaten to boycott talks

The Council of Governors has raised alarm over what it terms a systematic erosion of devolution, threatening to boycott future Division of Revenue negotiations after the National Treasury ignored their proposal and allocated counties Sh405.1 billion for the 2025/26 financial year.

The Council said the latest allocation falls far short of the Sh536 billion they had demanded, and accused the national government of reducing the Division of Revenue process to a ceremonial exercise that disregards the financial needs of devolved units.

Council Chairperson and Wajir Governor Ahmed Abdullahi said county leaders are considering skipping future discussions if the allocation trend continues, noting that their input has been rendered inconsequential.

“It loses all meaning if the national government unilaterally decides county allocations. Our input must be meaningful, not ceremonial,” Ahmed said.

He also dismissed the ongoing mediation between the National Assembly and the Senate on the Division of Revenue Bill, 2025, as “mere tokenism”, accusing the national government of sidelining counties in critical fiscal decisions.

According to the Bill, counties are set to receive Sh405.1 billion as their equitable share of revenue in the financial year ending June 30, 2026, only Sh17.6 billion more than the Sh387.4 billion allocated in the current financial year. This is despite a prior agreement during the Division of Revenue (Amendment) Act, 2024, that settled on Sh400 billion before President William Ruto’s withdrawal of the Finance Bill due to deadly Gen Z-led protests.

Governor Ahmed argued that the incremental increases over the years do not reflect the true cost of devolved functions. Over the past five years, allocations have grown from Sh316.5 billion in 2020/21 to Sh370 billion in both 2022 and 2023, but governors insist this has not kept pace with the increasing responsibilities assigned to counties.

He noted that over 200 functions, estimated to be worth at least Sh150 billion, have already been unbundled, costed and transferred to counties, yet these are not adequately accounted for in the equitable share.

“The equitable share remains the main lifeline for counties and must reflect the full extent of devolved functions,” Ahmed said.

The allocation formula considers key variables including population, health services, infrastructure, agriculture and poverty levels.

During this year’s consultations, the Council of Governors initially proposed Sh465 billion, later revising it upwards to Sh536 billion. The Commission on Revenue Allocation (CRA) recommended Sh417 billion, while the National Treasury stuck with its Sh405 billion figure.

“At the IBEC meeting, we deliberated and revised the figure capped at Sh536 billion, but the National Treasury’s earlier proposal of Sh405 billion has been retained. It’s disappointing,” Ahmed said, referring to the Intergovernmental Budget and Economic Council, which brings together national and county representatives.

Governors also lashed out at the Senate, accusing it of abandoning its constitutional role to defend county governments.

“The Senate has not stamped its authority... We appear before the Finance and Budget Committee, but when things go wrong, they shift the blame to governors, yet we don’t have a seat at the table during mediation,” Ahmed said.

He called on senators to firmly defend the CoG’s proposal and reject any figure below what was costed during the unbundling of devolved functions.

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“Senators must reject any increment that falls below what was costed during the unbundling of devolved functions. Settling for less than Sh150 billion worth of transferred responsibilities is unacceptable,” he added.