Kenyan Leader Signs New Bill into Law Aiming to Reduce Expenditure

#Finance
Kenyan Leader Signs New Bill into Law Aiming to Reduce Expenditure

Loveworld / 16 mins

August 6, 2024

2 min read

Kenyan President William Ruto signed the Supplementary Appropriations Bill into law on Monday, enacting a reduction in government expenditure by 145.7 billion shillings (approximately 1.12 billion U.S. dollars).
The new legislation, passed by the National Assembly on July 31, comes after the president withdrew the Finance Bill 2024 in response to anti-government protests. The bill preserves crucial funding, including about 154 million dollars designated for supporting farmers and boosting agricultural productivity.
According to a statement from the presidency in Nairobi, the reduction includes 308 million dollars in recurrent expenditure and 808 million dollars in development expenditure.
Key allocations under the new law include:

928.6 million dollars for education reforms, including teacher confirmations.
238.5 million dollars for the Higher Education Loans Board.
124.6 million dollars for health sector reforms and Universal Health Coverage.
27 million dollars for salary increases for security officers.

The law also proposes cuts in recurrent and development expenditure across the three branches of government, constitutional commissions, and independent offices.
The Finance Bill 2024, which proposed new taxes and sparked significant public dissent, was withdrawn by President Ruto on June 26. The bill aimed to raise an additional 2.7 billion dollars through increased taxes on essential goods and services, including bread and mobile money transfers. The proposed tax hikes led to widespread protests, particularly among young people, who criticized government spending and demanded greater accountability.