The Kenyan government has so far spent Ksh.2.1 billion for multinational security operations in Haiti, despite an earlier commitment that no taxpayer money would be used to fund the peace mission.
A letter from the Treasury to the National Assembl, reveals that the National Treasury spent a total of Ksh.17.6 billion under Article 223, which allows the government to spend funds without parliamentary approval. Of this amount, Ksh.2 billion was directed to support Kenya’s peacekeeping mission in Haiti.
The disbursement, made on September 18th this year, raises concerns about the adequacy of funding for the mission, with reports suggesting that Kenyan troops are facing difficult conditions in Haiti. Critics have pointed out the discrepancy between the earlier assurance that taxpayer funds would not be used and the actual expenditure.
When contacted for clarification, Treasury CS John Mbadi explained that the funds spent by Kenya would be reimbursed by the United Nations.
“This money we are spending on behalf of the UN, we are the ones making the payment so the money comes from our exchequer because these are our officers,” he said.
“So we pay and they refund, but now we have to recognize the expenditure because it was not in the budget. The law says two months should not elapse, and when we do supplementary budgeting, we will reflect it as both income and expenditure,” Mbadi added.
