NAIROBI, Kenya Feb 17 – State House has emerged as one of the fastest-spending arms of government in the opening months of the 2025/26 financial year, with new Treasury disclosures showing its recurrent budget already exhausted well before the year’s midpoint.
According to data from the National Treasury, expenditure at State House had climbed to Sh10.4 billion by the end of January 2026 Sh2.7 billion above the Sh7.7 billion approved for the entire financial year.
That means the President’s office has already spent more than 100 per cent of its annual recurrent allocation with five months still remaining before the close of the fiscal year on June 30.
Recurrent expenditure caters for day-to-day operations such as domestic and foreign travel, hospitality, fuel, maintenance, administrative support and staff allowances costs that sustain activities at the President’s official residence and satellite offices.
January alone saw a particularly sharp spike, with Sh1.3 billion spent in a single month an average of more than Sh42 million per day.
While expenditure at State House typically rises during periods of intense public engagements, regional tours, diplomatic meetings and national events, the current overrun stands out for its scale and speed.
The spending pattern is mirrored at the Office of the Deputy President, which has also exceeded its full-year recurrent budget by Sh361.6 million within the same period.
At present, the two executive offices are the only government entities reported to have breached their annual ceilings so early in the financial cycle.
Treasury officials have cautioned that such overruns complicate fiscal management, often forcing internal reallocations or drawing on contingency provisions to plug emerging gaps.
Financial analysts have previously warned that early overspending narrows room for manoeuvre later in the year, particularly when revenues are underperforming.
The developments come as the government prepares a Sh262.9 billion supplementary budget aimed at addressing higher-than-anticipated operational costs and revenue shortfalls.
Reports in recent weeks have pointed to mounting pressure on the exchequer from rising debt servicing obligations, security operations, and increased administrative expenses across ministries.
The supplementary estimates are expected to lift total government spending for the year ending June 30, 2026, to Sh4.532 trillion, up from the original Sh4.269 trillion approved by Parliament. Of this, recurrent expenditure is projected to rise by Sh204.6 billion to Sh3.338 trillion, while development spending is set to increase by Sh58.3 billion to Sh707.3 billion.
The office of the controller of budget has observed that the growing share of recurrent costs including salaries, debt repayment and operational outlays continues to squeeze development allocations, leaving less fiscal space for infrastructure, social programmes and county transfers.
The first half of the financial year has already seen spending on operations, maintenance and debt servicing exceed projections.
