Governor Johnson Sakaja's administration in Nairobi has been under scrutiny over its use of public funds, with a report revealing that the county spent Sh125 billion between July 2022 and June 2026. Out of this amount, only Sh15.4 billion, or 12.36%, was used for development projects, while Sh109.5 billion went towards recurrent expenditures. This has raised concerns about the county's ability to deliver on its development agenda.
According to the Centre for Economic Governance (CEG), Nairobi is among the counties with the worst performance in terms of development expenditure. The Public Finance Management Act requires counties to allocate at least 30% of their expenditure to development projects. In Nairobi's case, this would translate to around Sh37.5 billion, a shortfall of over Sh22 billion. The county's development projects have been stalled, with 57 projects valued at over Sh2 billion pending.
Some of the stalled projects include a Sh256 million medical complex at Mbagathi Hospital, a Sh76 million social hall in Mwiki, and a Sh30 million maternity ward at Umoja 1 Health Centre. The Controller of Budget, Margaret Nyakang'o, attributed the delays to various factors, including contractors abandoning projects due to non-payment. An audit also revealed that over half of the Sh125 billion spent by Sakaja's administration went towards salaries and allowances.
A total of Sh63.3 billion was used for salaries, representing 50.65% of the total expenditure. The audit also raised questions about the county's payment system, with Sh1.9 billion being withdrawn from the salaries account without proper documentation. Additionally, Sh840.4 million was listed as worker costs without supporting documents. The number of county workers also increased from 13,354 in 2023 to 19,258 in June 2025.
In the solid waste management sector, the county spent Sh1.7 billion in 2024/25, while another report from City Hall put the expenditure at Sh3 billion. The Auditor General noted that payments of Sh361 million lacked sufficient documentation to verify the services provided. Furthermore, Nairobi spent Sh2.6 billion on external lawyers in 2024/25, despite having over 100 lawyers in its law department.
The Budget and Economic Committee of Parliament also listed Nairobi among counties with poor public resource utilization. As the county's economy contributes around one-third of Kenya's economy, valued at Sh4.1 trillion in 2024, these concerns have significant implications. Governor Sakaja is now entering his final year in office and faces the challenge of addressing issues of salaries, stalled projects, and public fund utilization.
The Centre for Economic Governance (CEG) and the Controller of Budget, Margaret Nyakang'o, have raised concerns about Nairobi's development expenditure. Key among them are the stalled projects and poor use of public funds. As Governor Sakaja looks to his final year in office, he must prioritize addressing these challenges to ensure effective service delivery to Nairobi residents.
Key points
- Nairobi's development projects worth Sh2 billion are stalled.
- The county's development expenditure stands at 12.36%, short of the required 30%.
- Governor Sakaja's administration has faced scrutiny over its use of public funds.
