The National Assembly Committee on Sports and Culture has turned down the Sports Ministry’s request to increase the budget for Kenya’s role in the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON).
The rejection comes amid reports that Kenya has yet to pay the required Sh3.5 billion hosting fee to the Confederation of African Football (CAF).
The committee, chaired by Webuye West MP Hon. Dan Wanyama, dismissed the ministry’s proposal to raise the budget from Sh3.5 billion to Sh5 billion, calling the explanation insufficient.
“In fact, you should be cutting down your budget because the championship is being hosted by three states. Your push for an enhanced allocation should not be based on a country that single-handedly hosted AFCON,” Wanyama said.
The firm stance followed revelations by Principal Secretary for Sports Elijah Mwangi that Kenya has not yet remitted the Sh3.5 billion required by CAF due to lack of funds. Kenya will co-host the tournament with Uganda and Tanzania under the Pamoja bid.
“Uganda and Tanzania, who are our co-hosts, have already complied by paying the required fee to secure the hosting rights,” Mwangi told the committee during deliberations on the 2026 Budget Policy Statement.
The Sports Ministry had asked the committee to include the Sh3.5 billion in a supplementary budget to meet its CAF obligations and protect Kenya’s hosting status.
In defense of the proposed increase, Mwangi said he led a delegation, including officials from Football Kenya, on a benchmarking visit to the last AFCON tournament in Morocco.
“We established that for Kenya to match the standards set during the competition in Morocco, we must enhance the budget,” he explained.
However, MPs emphasized that the financial commitment should reflect the shared nature of the tournament, noting that co-hosting with two other countries should reduce the overall burden.
Despite rejecting the proposed increment, the committee assured the ministry of its support in lobbying the National Treasury to release the necessary hosting fee.
The 2026/27 Budget Policy Statement sets the Sports Department’s ceiling at Sh25.49 billion, with Sh7.38 billion for recurrent expenditure and Sh18.11 billion for development projects.
The session also highlighted funding gaps across other ministry divisions. Principal Secretary for Culture, Arts and Heritage Ummi Bashir told MPs that her department needed Sh5.7 billion for recurrent expenses but was allocated Sh2.8 billion.
“As a result of the underfunding, many earmarked projects have stalled or failed to take off,” she said, appearing alongside Cabinet Secretary Hanna Cheptumo.
Yatta MP Hon. Robert Basil questioned the allocation of Sh37 million to support presidential county visits during cultural events. Mwangi clarified that the amount had been revised to Sh23.6 million, arguing that the Office of the President already receives funding for such activities.
“The Office of the President is allocated funds for such activities. Why do you budget for the same? This amounts to duplication,” Hon. Basil said.
Lawmakers also examined Sh145 million set aside under the Creative Economy docket for the Creative Economy Policy, the Creative Economy Bill, and amendments to the Copyright Bill. Principal Secretary for Creative Economy Mr. Jacobs Fikirini defended the allocation, explaining that it would support regulation drafting, stakeholder engagement, and public participation.
He further revealed that the sector had requested Sh2.891 billion for implementing the Film Services Programme in 2026/27 but received only Sh848.17 million, leaving a shortfall of Sh2.043 billion.
