Samburu Governor Lati Lelelit has defended his county's agriculture spending before the Senate, saying the devolved unit delivered key food security and livestock programmes despite delayed funding and recurring drought, even as lawmakers examined audit concerns surrounding procurement and project implementation.
Appearing before the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries chaired by Bungoma Senator David Wakoli on Thursday, Lelelit said Samburu attained a 95 per cent budget absorption rate during the 2025/26 financial year and had continued investing in projects aimed at strengthening livestock production, climate resilience and market access across the county.
The committee was reviewing the department's budget performance, use of conditional grants, implementation of agriculture, livestock and fisheries projects, as well as responses to issues raised by the Office of the Auditor-General.
According to submissions presented to senators, the Department of Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries received Sh803.47 million during the 2025/26 financial year, with Sh585.45 million allocated for development programmes and Sh218.02 million for recurrent expenditure. The county said it spent Sh763.03 million, representing a 95 per cent absorption rate.
Lelelit told the committee the county had maintained its focus on programmes that support pastoral communities and improve food production despite financial constraints.
He highlighted the Food Systems Resilience Project (FSRP), which received Sh251 million, including Sh246 million from the World Bank and Sh5 million from the county government.
According to the governor, the programme strengthened digital agriculture systems benefiting 24,740 farmers, trained 33,440 farmers on climate-smart farming practices, supported 105 agripreneurs and invested Sh109.7 million in six natural resource management projects serving more than 25,600 residents.
Lelelit also told senators that another Sh71 million had been committed to market access and agribusiness initiatives benefiting more than 12,300 people.
On the Kenya Livestock Commercialisation Project (KeLCoP), the governor said the programme received Sh41.09 million, equivalent to 99.6 per cent of its approved allocation, and spent Sh39.51 million on projects including livestock sale yards, solar-powered boreholes, water pans, feed stores, pasture rehabilitation and improved livestock breeds.
However, Lelelit acknowledged that delayed disbursement of funds from the National Treasury and prolonged drought had slowed implementation of some projects.
He told the committee that the county had adopted measures to sustain project delivery while strengthening procurement systems, project monitoring and financial accountability to address concerns raised in previous audit reports.
The hearing also focused on audit queries surrounding the procurement of 524 camels worth Sh42.32 million during the 2024/25 financial year.
According to the Auditor-General, "The Department for Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries procured five hundred and twenty-four (524) camels through open tendering at a contract sum of Kshs.42,320,000, awarded to a local company. However, review of tender opening minutes and evaluation reports revealed that they were not signed or initialed by all committee members."
The audit also questioned the evaluation process after a bidder offering a lower price was disqualified despite evidence that the required tender security had been submitted.
Auditors further reported that although the contract required delivery within 21 days, only 224 camels had been delivered by March 2025, leaving 300 outstanding despite the supplier receiving an advance payment of Sh18.09 million.
"The value for money on the expenditure on live animals could not be confirmed," the Auditor-General stated.
The committee also examined unresolved audit observations for the 2023/24 financial year relating to the procurement of camel and cattle breeding stock worth more than Sh131 million, with auditors citing inadequate beneficiary records, missing needs assessment reports and completed projects worth Sh57.37 million that had not been put into use.
Responding to the concerns, Lelelit told senators that Samburu had strengthened procurement planning, contract management, documentation, field inspections and internal controls. He added that the county had prepared management action plans and enhanced monitoring and evaluation systems to implement recommendations from auditors and other oversight institutions.
The Senate committee is expected to review the county government's responses alongside the Auditor-General's findings before issuing recommendations on the management of agriculture, livestock and fisheries programmes in Samburu County.