Uhuru Kenyatta and his deputy splashed $1.9 million on travel in three months

david nganga

February 19, 2018 7:02 PM

This comes even as the government struggles to implement austerity measures

President Uhuru Kenyatta and his deputy William Ruto spent Sh193 million ($1.9 million) on travel in the three months to September, the Controller of Budget (CoB) has said.

Data from the office shows the Presidency —which comprises the offices of Mr Kenyatta and Mr Ruto — spent Sh174.7 million ($1.7 million) on domestic travel and Sh19 million ($187,720) on foreign trips in the first quarter of the year.

The expenditure represents a 40 per cent increase on the Sh138.3 million ($1.36 million) the two offices spent on travel in the same period the previous year.

Mr Kenyatta stepped up campaigning for the August 8 election, underlined by the sharp rise in the domestic travel spending during the quarter.

The Parliamentary Service Commission and National Assembly alos topped the list of high spenders at Sh176.7 million and Sh434.2 million respectively.

"Expenditure on domestic travel for state ministries, departments and agencies (MDAs) was also among the highest at Sh1.3 billion,” said the CoB, Agnes Odhiambo.

Taxpayers paid Sh147 million less on domestic travel in the year, compared to the Sh1.4 billion the previous year.

Likewise, expenditure on foreign travel for the 50 MDAs dropped 68 per cent to Sh655 million compared to the Sh2.1 billion spent a year prior, an indication that austerity measures undertaken by the government are beginning to bear fruits.

The Jubilee government early in 2014 announced a tight austerity programme aimed at cutting spending on non-core activities.

david nganga