Public servants spend Sh12.6m daily on rent amid drop in staff

What you need to know:

The national government, Parliament and Judiciary spent Sh3.4 billion in the nine months to March 2015 on rent with current government buildings unable to host all public servants.

Taxpayers are spending Sh12.6 million daily in rent for public servants as national government workers dropped by 52,000 last year following the introduction of devolution.

Data from the office of the Controller of Budget shows the national government, Parliament and Judiciary spent Sh3.4 billion in the nine months to March 2015 on rent with current government buildings unable to host all public servants.

The move comes as national government workers dropped from 233,200 to 180,900 following the transfer of staff to county governments.

The data from the Controller of Budget does not indicate how much county governments spent on rent.

Counties, which started work immediately after the March 2013 elections, had 99,600 employees on their payroll.

The Foreign Affairs ministry spent Sh788 million on rent in the nine months, with the planned opening of new consulates expected to lift the ministry’s expenditure. The ministry plans to open new embassies in Morocco, Angola, Malawi, Senegal, and Cuba.

Six new consulates will be opened in the United States in Dallas, Boston, Atlanta, Chicago, Minneapolis and Seattle.

Leased properties

Commissions formed by the 2010 Constitution have also seen a rise in the rental budget with most hosted in leased properties.

These include the Commission for the Implementation of the Constitution (Sh11 million), the National Lands Commission (Sh14 million) and the Commission on Revenue Allocation (Sh18.5 million).

The Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission spent Sh145 million in nine months.

IEBC headquarters are located at the Anniversary Towers in Nairobi but the commission has offices spread across the country.

Some agencies are feeling the weight of rising rents, prompting a number to seek outright purchase of buildings.

The Treasury is preparing to allocate the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission Sh300 million to buy an office block for its headquarters.

Because the commission currently pays Sh70 million annually in rent at the Integrity Centre, the purchase cost will be recouped in five years.

Parliament, whose rent bill stood at Sh365 million, is building a Sh5.8 billion, 26-storey tower to host offices and other amenities. It currently rents space after the MPs population grew from 290 to 416.