Workers offload maize at the port of Mombasa. The Transport ministry will use its extra budgetary allocation to design the Lamu port. File
The Transport ministry is one of the top gainers in the revised budget tabled last Friday.
Transport got an extra Sh980 million to be used in the Lamu port development and modernisation of a passenger train network. The money will be spent on research, feasibility studies, project preparation and design. The reallocation raises the ministry’s spending to Sh14.2 billion.
National recurrent expenditure has risen from Sh754.4 billion to Sh761 billion while the development spending is down by Sh2 billion to Sh396 billion.
Much of the revision is explained by cutting of the Ministry of Finance budget by Sh2.5 billion. Originally Sh5.5 billion was set aside for investment in domestic public ‘non-financial’ institutions but this has been reduced to Sh3 billion.
For the first time, the Budget incorporated recommendations by the Parliamentary Budget Committee.
The Budget is set for passing without scrutiny—a process known as guillotine and is necessitated by the heavy House business calendar. Gender, Children and Social Development ministry lost when the committee recommended that “additional funds amounting to Sh845 million under Capital Grants and Transfers be revised to zero.” The Treasury obeyed.
Cash for certified seeds and purchase of animals during drought was revised upwards from Sh46 million to Sh318 million. Another Sh189 million is allocated for the same purpose under the Ministry of Livestock Development. The committee recommended Sh900 million for the purpose.
Public Health ministry budget for equipment falls by Sh300 million to Sh96.1 million while sister Medical Services will get a similar amount for purchase of specialised equipment.
The Budget Committee had recommended an additional Sh234 million for the ministry. The Defence recurrent expenditure has risen Sh52 billion from Sh45 billion.
Teachers Service Commission (TSC) will see its budget rise from Sh103 billion to Sh105.9 billion reflecting improved pay for teachers.
