We have increased this year’s budget because of economic crisis - Ndindi Nyoro

The chair of the National Assembly Budget Committee Ndindi Nyoro says the government’s move to increase the 2023/24 budget from Ksh.3.39 to 3.678 trillion is due to the prevalent economic crisis in the country.

Speaking on Thursday ahead of the budget reading in Parliament, Nyoro said that the state of the economy necessitates the government to increase expenditure and grow the economy.

“The reason ya kwamba tunaongeza bajeti ni kwa sababu ya vile hali iko, hali ikiwa vile iko lazima serikali inaongeza matumizi kwa sababu ni njia moja ya kukuza uchumi,” Nyoro said.

Nyoro claimed the previous regime left a deficit of Ksh.860 billion and upon further scrutiny of the budget, they found out that President Uhuru Kenyatta’s administration had already spent Ksh.200 billion extra of the stipulated budget.

The chair added that the government can only obtain revenue locally through taxation and internationally through borrowing and insisted the government is trying to reduce the latter.

Treasury Cabinet Secretary Njuguna Ndung’u was set to table the 2023/24 Budget before Parliament, which is an additional Ksh.251 billion to the previous 2022/2023 Budget of Ksh.3.39 trillion.

It is President William Ruto’s administration’s first budget and the National Assembly Finance Committee is proposing a Ksh.80.7 billion addition, with the total budget expected to hit Ksh.4.4 trillion.

The National government has been allocated Ksh.2.2 trillion, while the Judiciary has been allocated Ksh.22 billion.

The Legislature (National Assembly and Senate) have meanwhile been given Ksh.41 billion.

At present, Kenya’s debt is placed at Ksh.1.6 trillion and the government hopes to borrow Ksh.720.1 billion more.