Questions over project delivery, spending clarity, and environmental safety took centre stage in Kisumu County as senators toured FLLOCA-funded developments, putting the county’s climate action programme under close scrutiny despite high reported completion rates.
The Senate Standing Committee on Finance and Budget has wrapped up its oversight mission in Kisumu County, where it reviewed ongoing and completed projects under the Financing Locally-Led Climate Action (FLLOCA) programme to assess performance, accountability, and community impact.
The visit comes after a similar exercise in Vihiga County and forms part of a wider review of how climate-linked funds, jointly supported by the World Bank and county governments, are being utilised on the ground.
County officials told the committee that Kisumu received Sh273 million in the 2023/2024 financial year, alongside an additional Sh100 million contribution from the county government to support implementation.
They reported that 47 out of 49 projects across 35 wards have been completed, with only a few remaining unfinished. Among the pending works is the Ogenya Evacuation Centre, which stalled after storm damage affected its roofing stage.
However, the committee heard that implementation of conditional grants has faced several challenges, including political disagreements over project design. The county executive noted that Ward Representatives often push for small-scale village projects instead of larger investments meant to serve wider communities.
Officials also pointed to delays in national-level coordination and late disbursement of funds, which slowed down approvals and affected the passage of enabling legislation for conditional grants.
Lawmakers raised concern over a Sh14 million allocation for Phase Two of the Climate Change Resource Centre, seeking clarity on how Phase One was implemented and questioning inconsistencies in the Bill of Quantities.
Financial records presented showed that Phase One used Sh10 million from county funds and Sh30 million from FLLOCA financing, against a projected total cost of Sh60 million for the three-storey facility.
Vice Chairperson Senator Tabitha Mutinda urged the county leadership to benchmark against neighbouring counties that have shown stronger progress.
"Our expectation definitely is very high compared to where we are coming from, that is the great county of Vihiga, where really impressive work has been done by the Governor there. Your leadership should have taken advantage and just crossed over to use Vihiga County as your benchmark," Vice Chairperson Senator Tabitha Mutinda said.
Other committee members defended the locally driven model, saying grassroots investments remain critical when properly implemented.
"Please don't have a negative attitude on this locally-led programme, as we realize it is highly beneficial to the community. The figure of a locally-led project is not supposed to be small; it can go to a bigger figure depending on the catchments of the area," Senator Mariam Sheikh, a Member of the Committee submitted, before Senator Essy Okenyuri added, "We are anxious to see what is on the ground."
During site inspections, senators also flagged environmental risks. Kakamega Senator Boni Khalwale raised alarm over a flood control project in Ahero allegedly discharging raw sewage into River Nyando.
"I have seen in Ahero one of the projects that was meant to contain flood water; a tunnel has been dug, it has been stone-pitched, and raw sewer is draining into the River Nyando. It is a medical, environmental emergency, completely contrary to what FLLOCA was coming here to achieve. The county government of Kisumu must, with immediate effect, go and rectify the issue of raw sewer draining into fresh water," Kakamega Senator Boni Khalwale said.
Committee Chairperson Senator Ali Roba said the oversight exercise is meant to ensure both accountability and effective use of devolved funds.
"Our objective is only to assess whether the projects have taken place, the value for money, fitness for purpose, and to find out whether there is ownership from the locals. We aim to ensure that we protect devolution at the national level by way of fighting for resource allocation, as well as exercise oversight to protect devolution from itself," Mandera Senator Ali Roba, the Chairperson of the Committee, said.
A final report will be compiled after review of additional documents requested from the county government and verification of findings from the field inspections.