NAIROBI, Kenya — Margaret Nyakang’o has raised concerns over rising government expenditure on travel, revealing that billions of shillings were spent on domestic and foreign trips within six months, in apparent contradiction of austerity measures.
In the latest National Government Implementation Review Report covering July 1 to December 31, 2025, Nyakang’o disclosed that the Executive Office of the President spent Sh768.5 million on domestic travel and Sh1.165 billion on foreign trips during the period under review.
Overall, the report shows the government spent Sh7.74 billion on domestic travel and Sh3.13 billion on foreign travel, drawing scrutiny over compliance with the 2025 Budget Policy Statement, which emphasised cutting non-essential expenditure.
“Travel cost comprises Sh7.74 billion and Sh3.13 billion for domestic and foreign expenditure, respectively, which is against the 2025 Budget Policy Statement theme on expenditure reforms to cut non-essential expenses,” Nyakang’o said.
The findings come amid additional revelations that taxpayers may spend a further Sh3.1 billion to facilitate foreign travel by President William Ruto before the end of the current financial year.
According to documents tabled in Parliament, the State Department for Foreign Affairs has been instructed to organise 11 outbound trips for the president by June 30, 2026.
Foreign Affairs Principal Secretary Korir Sing’Oei told the National Assembly Departmental Committee on Defence, Intelligence and Foreign Relations that the department has already spent Sh2.2 billion on state visits—exceeding its Sh1.8 billion allocation by Sh400 million.
If the planned trips proceed, total spending on presidential travel could rise to Sh5.3 billion, significantly overshooting the approved budget.
“To date, the State Department has spent Sh2.2 billion of the Sh1.8 billion allocated for state visits. Further, the department has been instructed to prepare and facilitate an additional 11 outbound visits by June 2026 at a cost of Sh3.1 billion,” Sing’Oei said.
He added that the department faces a funding shortfall of Sh3.5 billion, which would require intervention from the National Treasury through supplementary estimates.
The disclosures were made before a parliamentary committee chaired by Nelson Koech, as officials defended budget proposals under Supplementary Budget No. 1 for the 2025/26 financial year.
A separate State House report tabled in Parliament shows that between October 2024 and September 2025, President Ruto undertook 24 regional and international trips, attended 19 global conferences, and hosted 10 visiting heads of state.
The data reflects a slight decline from the 31 foreign trips recorded between July 2023 and June 2024, although travel remains a significant cost driver.
The spending comes despite a July 2024 directive by President Ruto restricting non-essential travel and limiting the size of official delegations, issued in the wake of the 2024 Kenyan Finance Bill protests led largely by young people.
Public finance experts warn that continued high expenditure on travel risks undermining fiscal discipline efforts, particularly at a time when the government is under pressure to reduce spending and manage public debt.
Under Article 201 of the Constitution, public finance must be guided by principles of openness, accountability, and prudent use of resources—standards analysts say are increasingly under scrutiny in light of the latest report.
The Controller of Budget’s findings are likely to intensify parliamentary oversight and public debate over government spending priorities, especially as Kenyans continue to grapple with a high cost of living.
