The National Treasury is rolling out a new digital system aimed at giving the government a clearer and more reliable picture of development partner resources flowing into Kenya.
The Development Partners Management Information System (DPMIS) is expected to be launched before the end of the year and will provide consolidated information on development partners supporting Kenya, the programmes they are funding, where resources are being directed, amounts committed and funds actually disbursed.
The system is expected to strengthen government coordination of development assistance while improving accountability and ensuring external support is better aligned with national development priorities.
National Treasury PS Chris Kiptoo chaired a meeting of heads of departments that received an update on progress towards the development and operationalisation of DPMIS. The meeting also considered measures to ensure the system delivers its intended benefits.
He directed officials to prioritise data quality, timeliness, completeness and coverage, while strengthening institutional mechanisms for the timely reporting, validation and coordination of development partner information.
Once operational, DPMIS is expected to provide government with more accurate information for planning, oversight and decision-making.
It will also offer a stronger basis for assessing how development partner resources are contributing to Kenya’s national development priorities.
The system is intended to go beyond serving as a repository of information.
The Treasury says it will transform development finance data into actionable intelligence, enabling government to identify gaps, reduce duplication and improve coordination of development assistance.
The initiative comes as the government seeks to strengthen oversight of development resources and ensure funds provided by development partners complement rather than duplicate existing government programmes.
Treasury officials say better tracking and use of development finance data will ultimately support more effective allocation of resources and improve development outcomes for Kenyans.
In January, the National Treasury had outlined plans to amend the Public Finance Management (PFM) Act to allow for the submission of two separate pieces of legislation governing additional allocations to the counties.
One bill would cover funds sourced from the national government’s share of revenue, while the second would deal exclusively with allocations financed through loans and grants from development partners.
The move, the BPS notes, seeks to address a perennial problem that has disrupted service delivery and raised the cost of foreign borrowing.
The delays have also often resulted in funds reaching counties well into the financial year, undermining project implementation and weakening budget absorption.
“It has also led to fiscal inefficiencies resulting in additional costs for the country in the form of commitment fees and interest charged on foreign borrowing,” BPS says.
The proposal follows repeated delays in the enactment of the County Governments Additional Allocations Bill.
The proposed law authorises the transfer of conditional grants from the national government and development partners to counties.
According to the BPS, the issue was escalated to the Intergovernmental Budget and Economic Council, a forum for consultation and cooperation between the national and county governments under the chairmanship of the Deputy President.
Resultantly, IBEC directed Treasury to initiate a multi-stakeholder engagement within one month to explore alternative legislative and administrative frameworks to ensure efficiency and the timely flow of conditional grants.
“The persistent delays in the approval of the County Governments Additional Allocations Bill have led to late disbursement of funds, disruption in service delivery and low absorption of allocated funds at the county level,” the Treasury notes in the policy document.
Under the current framework, all additional allocations are bundled into a single Bill that must be approved by Parliament before any funds can be released. This is regardless of whether such allocations are financed through national revenues or donor funding.
