The National Assembly will begin debate on the Estimates and Revenue Expenditure for the coming fiscal year of 2024/25 after the Budget and Appropriation Committee concluded public hearing on the matter.
The committee, chaired by Kiharu MP Ndindi Nyoro concluded the exercise which took place between Wednesday, May 15 and Saturday, May 18, 2024 and which was undertaken in 20 counties, including Mombasa, Nairobi, Kericho, Kakamega, Kericho, Kisumu, Isiolo, Nyamira, Taita Taveta, Narok, Vihiga among others.
In Mombasa, residents called for more rehabilitation centers to cater for the rising cases of drug and substance abuse victims, youth hubs to enable youth to learn basic self-empowerment skills, construction of hospitals for children with special needs, better lighting in the shorelines and standby emergency response on needs basis.
Residents of Kericho county called for the enhancement of the road infrastructure which is vital for transporting tea, borehole installations to alleviate water scarcity, bridges and gabions in flood-prone areas.
They also asked for additional funds for the expansion of the Technical Training Institute to accommodate more students, completion of Kericho airport, construction of a referral hospital, and the relocation of the Kericho prison to facilitate town expansion.
Kakamega residents asked for additional budgetary allocations towards the development of infrastructure across the 12 constituencies in the county, provision of electricity connectivity, road, health and school infrastructure, water, and the revival of Mumias Sugar Factory.
Kisumu residents drawn from the seven sub-counties said their top priority is the construction of the multi-billion-shilling Soin-Koru multipurpose dam, River Nyando.
“Construction and completion of SoinKoru multipurpose dam will resolve almost 90 percent of the problems we face during the rainy seasons such as floods that displace people, destroy our homes and critical infrastructure in the constituencies of Muhoroni, Nyando, Nyakach, and partly Kisumu East,” said Bishop James Mbara, a resident of Muhoroni constituency.
In Isiolo County, residents called for resolution of issues of boundary and community land registration.
Residents also urged the lawmakers to help solve the persistent water shortage, set up irrigation schemes, increase funding for the secondary schools in the area, build a rehabilitation center, establish network connectivity, develop employment programmes for the youth and provide proper facilitation for Persons with Disabilities (PWDs ).
In Nyamira, members were urged to construct an ultra-modern sports complex to help combat the prevalent issue of substance abuse which has been detrimental to the community, upgrade the Nyamira Level 4 Hospital to a level six facility and allocate funds for tarmacking of roads.
Taita Taveta county residents called for more budgetary allocation for the education sector to be used in recruitment of teachers, promotion of interns and introduction of school feeding programmes in public schools.
In Vihiga county, residents called for monetary allocations towards development of roads, improvement of health facilities, electricity connection, education sector, agriculture and social protection.
Youth in Narok county sought increased funding for the government internship program, construction of more sports centers, establishment of rehabilitation centers and an increase in the National Government Constituencies Development Fund (NG-CDF) kitty to support more needy students.
Kilifi residents requested for construction of a Huduma Centre for easy access to services, restoration of the cashew nut industry in Kilifi North Constituency, establishment of coconut processing industries in each constituency to address the unemployment menace among the youth, and construction of a multi-purpose social hall.
In Nairobi, residents said there is the need to allocate funds for the repair of roads damaged by recent floods.
A number of residents also decried poor garbage collection services and stressed the need for reforms in healthcare funding as well as speedy disbursement of National Government Affirmative Action Fund and the National Government Constituencies Development Fund (NG-CDF
The Committee also conducted public participation in, Machakos, Kiambu, Murang’a, Baringo, Nakuru, Meru, Mandera, Homabay, and Turkana counties.
