President William Ruto has announced stringent measures aimed at reducing government spending and improving the financial performance of state-owned enterprises. Addressing chairs and CEOs of state enterprises at State House in Nairobi, President Ruto expressed his commitment to curbing pilferage, wastage, and corruption within government institutions.
The President emphasized the need for state corporations to operate profitably and efficiently, warning that those consistently recording losses and lacking viable plans would face closure. He underscored the detrimental impact of sustained losses on the country’s economy and vowed to take decisive action to stem financial haemorrhaging. “We must deal firmly and decisively with pilferage, wastage, and theft, and the so evident corruption,” President Ruto declared.
As part of the new directives, commercial state corporations are required to remit 80% of their income after taxes to the national treasury, with specific guidelines on the allocation of the remaining 20%. Additionally, regulatory institutions are expected to remit 90% of excess funds, with strict enforcement measures in place to ensure compliance.
The President’s announcement comes amid concerns over the country’s recurrent budget and the need for prudent management of public funds. Recently, the Chairperson of the Salaries and Remuneration Commission, Lynn Mengich, highlighted the reasons behind the high recurrent budget and outlined plans to address fiscal challenges at the third National Wage Bill Conference.
