TUKO.co.ke journalist Japhet Ruto has over eight years of experience in financial, business, and technology reporting and offers profound insights into Kenyan and global economic trends.

Charles Kerich, Nairobi County CEC for Finance and Economic Planning, has formally presented the 2025/2026 budget to the county assembly, reassuring citizens that, despite an expanded revenue base, no additional taxes have been imposed.

The entire budgeted amount for the fiscal year is KSh 44.6 billion, which includes KSh 13.4 billion for development and KSh 31.2 billion for recurring expenses.

The 30% budgetary allotment for development is in line with Section 107 of the Public Finance Management Act of 2012, which stipulates that development must get at least 30% of a county's budget.

Kerich underlined that maintaining the present tax rates is a conscious decision to protect Nairobi residents from the consequences of a challenging economic environment.

"Due to financial constraints, the taxes will not be increased to protect our people from the tough economic times," Kerich explained while presenting the projected expenditure.

To enhance service delivery without adding to the financial burden on citizens, the county will expand its tax base and tap into unexplored revenue streams.

Receiver of Revenue Tiras Njoroge stated during the presentation that the county had exceeded its revenue performance for 2023/2024, collecting KSh 13.7 billion in the 2024/2025 fiscal year.

This was over KSh 1 billion more than the KSh 12.8 billion collected the year before.

In the 2022/2023 financial year, the county generated KSh 12.1 billion in revenue, marking a notable rise from the KSh 10 billion collected in previous years.

"This year has been difficult, particularly because of the regular protests in the central business district that have impacted income collection. However, we were able to collect KSh 13.7 billion," Njoroge expounded in a statement seen by .

With 145 projects completed in the past year, KSh 2.155 billion has been allotted to ward development programmes.

The devolved unit invested KSh 2.8 billion for road building and repair and KSh 1.033 billion on stadium and sports complex construction and renovation, which act as youth recreation hubs.

"We will keep funding important initiatives and programmes, such as the school meal programme (KSh 700 million), which serves more than 316,000 students, and the development and renovation of several marketplaces to foster a favourable business environment," the county's chief finance officer, Asha Abdi, added.

In other news, Governor Johnson Sakaja declared that the combination of all licenses into a single permit in Nairobi was a game-changer for business owners.

Sakaja observed that corruption had been reduced and the devolved unit's activities had been streamlined by the single business permit.

Every corporate license the county issues, he said, includes a QR code, which makes it easy to verify legality and further guards against fraud.

Source: TUKO.co.ke