Kenyan treasury to monitor county funds through technology. The Treasury is in the final stages of a plan to monitor budgeting and expenditure of devolved funds in the 47 counties using information communication technology. The connectivity project will enable the Treasury to directly access counties’ accounts and see how money is being utilised. It is being done in phases but is in place in 28 counties which have been connected to the Integrated Financial Management System. It is expected to be in place in the remaining 19 counties by month end. Central system “Principal Secretary in the National Treasury ministry Kamau Thugge said communication equipment and applications will be installed in all county offices. The system would also be set up in all the 18 ministries. The government has received a Sh1.2 billion loan from the Belgium government for this under the e-government Private Network. Belgium has also lent the government Sh1.6 billion to put up an 85 kilometre powerline from Sondu through Kisii to Homa Bay. The ICT project will first focus on ensuring that all the counties draw their budgets online where they will always be in touch with the Treasury officials on their budgets. “There will also be telephone and video-conferencing for discussions between counties, government ministries and departments,” said Mr Thugge. Controller of budget The developments come a few months after a recommendation by Budget Controller Agnes Odhiambo that county governments be equipped with the infrastructure to help them manage their funds. The Treasury and the controller of budget have said that counties still lack the infrastructure to oversee the management of funds. Devolved funds will, therefore, remain under the watch of the National Treasury, which will be releasing them in staggered or quarterly basis. “There is no adequate infrastructure and the corresponding human capacity to rationalise the integrated financial management information system needed to track expenditure at the county level,” said Ms Odhiambo in a report to parliament in April. The budget controller, in the report tracking how the 2012/13 budget was being implemented last year, said that “a comprehensive monitoring and evaluation framework should be put in place to ensure close supervision of projects at the county level. Samuel Ouga II.
Posted on: Thu, 22 Aug 2013 10:37:55 +0000
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