NAIROBI, Kenya, Aug 5 – President William Ruto has signed the Supplementary Appropriations Act as the government intensifies budget cuts amid new austerity measures.
The move includes significant reductions across various sectors, with Sh6 billion slashed from the presidency, Sh6.9 billion from medical services, and Sh17.3 billion from roads and transport projects.
A brief forwarded to the head of state by parliament highlighted the delicate balance between necessary austerity measures and the need to cushion the livelihoods of the people and the economy.
“While it could be prudent to reduce expenditures by the amount equivalent to the anticipated revenue shortfall of Kshs.344.3 billion, this was not tenable given the delicate balance between austerity measures and cushioning the livelihoods of the people and the economy,” the brief stated.
The enactment of the measures follows President Ruto’s unprecedented decision on June 26 to withdraw the Finance Bill 2024.
“Listening keenly to the people of Kenya, who have said loudly that they want nothing to do with this Finance Bill 2024, I concede and therefore I will not sign the 2024 Finance Bill, and it shall subsequently be withdrawn,” President Ruto declared.
This decision came after weeks of sustained countrywide demonstrations by Gen-Z protesters, marking a historic moment as the first withdrawal of its kind since independence.
The Sh3.9 trillion budget will now be managed using the current Finance Act, supplemented by both external and internal borrowing to address the budget deficit.
