Counties spend nearly half of budgets on salaries, audit shows
Data from the 47 counties indicates that 46.8 percent of their total budgets, equivalent to Sh470.74 billion, went toward personnel expenses.
County governments spent a growing share of their budgets on salaries and allowances in the year ending June 2025, raising concerns over limited funding for development projects.
Data from the 47 counties indicates that 46.8 percent of their total budgets, equivalent to Sh470.74 billion, went toward personnel expenses.
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This is the highest proportion in three years, after 47.4 percent in the year ending June 2022.
Spending on development projects rose slightly to 26.3 percent of budgets, or Sh123.76 billion, up from 24.4 percent the previous year.
Despite this increase, high wage bills have continued to slow progress on key services such as road construction and healthcare delivery, affecting communities across the country.
“The expenditure landscape reveals excessive spending on employee compensation, with only eight counties staying within the 35 per cent regulatory ceiling,” Controller of Budget, Margaret Nyakang’o, stated in the latest county budget review.
She added that the current proportion of salary spending is the third-highest since devolution began, following 49.7 percent in 2018 and 47.4 percent in 2022.
The Public Finance Management Act 2023 mandates that counties spend at least 30 percent of their budgets on development and cap salaries at 35 percent.
However, counties have only met the minimum development spending threshold three times since devolution started. For instance, counties allocated 35 percent of their budgets to development in 2015, but this dropped to 34 percent in 2016 and 32.4 percent in 2017.
Increasing funds for development is crucial for infrastructure expansion, job creation, and boosting rural economies.
“The Controller advises that County Governments formulate and implement strategies to increase their development budget expenditures and meet the 30 per cent threshold as required by law,” Nyakang’o said.
The rise in wage bills is linked to steady recruitment across counties. A report shows that county employees increased to 226,500 by June 2024, up 10.7 percent from 204,600 in 2020. County workforces have grown consistently over time.
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