The National Treasury is seeking Parliament’s approval to increase spending for State ministries, including State House, the Office of the President, and Immigration, citing accumulated arrears and rising operational expenses.
The supplementary 2025-26 budget proposes an extra Sh287.4 billion, an 11.3 per cent increase over initial allocations, exceeding the constitutional ceiling under Article 223.
Treasury Cabinet Secretary John Mbadi told the National Assembly Budget and Appropriations Committee on Wednesday that the additional funding responds to overspending in previous months and commitments to settle outstanding bills.
“The gross ministerial expenditure in the full year 2025-26 supplementary estimates number 1 has increased by Sh287.4 billion, reflecting an increase of 11.3 per cent from the original approved ministerial estimates exceeding the limit set under Article 223 of the Constitution of Kenya,” Mbadi said. He added that Parliament’s special approval is required before the allocations can take effect.
The total increase, when including county allocations, rises to Sh316.7 billion or 13.5 per cent. Historically, Parliament has authorised such adjustments to address unexpected costs and inflationary pressures on government services.
State House leads in additional allocations, receiving Sh8.4 billion after its recurrent budget was exhausted by the seventh month of the financial year. The Office of the President is set to get Sh1.3 billion to clear outstanding bills, especially those linked to the now-defunct Nairobi Metropolitan Services.
The Department of Immigration and Citizen Services will receive Sh4.39 billion to expand mobile national ID programmes ahead of the 2027 elections.
Of the supplementary allocations, Sh185.8 billion has already been disbursed. This includes Sh3.88 billion to settle arrears from the 2017 university lecturers’ collective bargaining agreement.
Early-year analysis shows recurrent spending has exceeded planned targets, driven by higher costs in operations, maintenance, and debt service, while development and county allocations have lagged.
Mbadi stressed the importance of adhering to quarterly spending limits to prevent early budget exhaustion, which undermines fiscal planning and necessitates unplanned top-ups.
He also assured that measures are in place to stop further accumulation of pending bills while progressively clearing existing ones.
“The pending bills have accumulated over the years. This is not something we are going to sort out today because resources are limited and we cannot stop the country from moving while we are still settling pending bills,” he said.
“What we are doing first is to stop the accumulation of further pending bills. But those that have accumulated over the years, we will have to pay them, but in a standard manner so that they also don’t disrupt services.”
The Treasury Single Account system is expected to improve accountability by prioritising older invoices and reducing discretionary spending at ministry and agency level, ensuring that payments are systematic and transparent.
