Treasury to focus funds on projects to spur growth, job creation

The Treasury will focus on funding projects in infrastructure, agriculture, service and industry to spur economic growth in the coming financial year.

The National Treasury Cabinet secretary Henry Rotich said the government will prioritise allocations to the line ministries in the coming Budget.

“These are areas that will help us deliver economic growth as well as jobs,” said Mr Rotich on Friday when he assumed office at the Treasury Building in Nairobi.

“We will also work with the private sector to ensure favourable environment for business.”

Mr Rotich will be tasked with backing President Kenyatta’s Sh1.6 trillion Budget, the biggest ever in Kenya’s history.

The estimates show that the Treasury has worked through a tight fiscal space to accommodate some of the Budget-busting election promises of Mr Kenyatta’s Jubilee coalition, increasing by large margins the allocations to key ministries of Education, Agriculture, Internal Security and Health.

A macroeconomics expert, Mr Rotich also has the daunting task of raising more funds to bank roll government projects.

READ: Jubilee faces tough choices in effecting manifesto

Mr Kenyatta has also signalled his intention to stay on Mr Kibaki’s path of infrastructure development with a Sh125.7 billion allocation to the Ministry of Transport and Infrastructure making it the third largest item in the budget.

The Cabinet secretary said given the low inflation levels and the recent cut of the signal rate by the central bank; the economy will surpass last year’s growth of 4.7 per cent.