Members of County Assemblies (MCAs) across the country took home a staggering Ksh1.57 billion in sitting allowances during the 2024/2025 financial year, according to the latest report by the Controller of Budget (CoB).
The County Governments Budget Implementation Review Report (BIRR) for August 2025 shows that the expenditure accounted for 87 per cent of the approved Ksh1.80 billion sitting allowance budget. This was a slight rise from the 86 per cent recorded in the 2023/2024 financial year, when MCAs pocketed Ksh1.59 billion.
Busia County led the pack, spending Ksh64.4 million on sitting allowances, followed by Baringo (Ksh50.4 million), Homa Bay (Ksh45 million), Embu (Ksh30.6 million), and Elgeyo Marakwet (Ksh28.1 million). On the lower end, Bungoma recorded the least spending at Ksh27.5 million, with Garissa (Ksh20.3 million), Isiolo (Ksh18.7 million), Tana River (Ksh17.5 million), and Lamu (Ksh15.9 million) also among the lowest spenders.
The report also highlighted heavy expenditure on travel, with Nairobi, Machakos, Kitui, and Mombasa among the biggest spenders. Nairobi spent Ksh630.3 million on domestic travel, with Ksh271.3 million drawn from the County Assembly and Ksh359.1 million from the executive.
Machakos spent Ksh532 million on local trips and an additional Ksh99 million on foreign travel, sending delegations to countries such as Brazil, Dubai, Albania, and China. Kitui recorded the highest domestic travel bill at Ksh536 million, alongside Ksh72 million for foreign engagements.
Mombasa spent Ksh112 million on foreign trips, including visits to Turkey, Spain, South Korea, Japan, and the United States.
The findings have raised fresh questions about financial discipline in counties, even as critical development projects continue to face funding shortages.
 across the country took home a staggering Ksh1.57 billion in sitting allowances during the 2024/2025 financial year, according to the latest report by the Controller of Budget (CoB)){kind=link}