The Council of Governors (CoG) has declared a stalemate on the discussions around revenue sharing between the two levels of Government.

In a statement Tuesday, February 6, the CoG says that the discussions between Governors, the Commission on Revenue Allocation (CRA) and the National Treasury had hit a snag.

CoG Chairperson Anne Waiguru says that not even the decision to advance the talks before the Intergovernmental Budget and Economic Council (IBEC) chaired by the Deputy President could yield a consensus.

“We however note with concern, that after lengthy discussions and analysis of the proposed recommendations by the task team, the three parties retained divergent positions on their proposed figures for shareable revenue,” Waiguru, who is the Kirinyaga County Governor, says.

During the discussions, the National Treasury was proposing KSh391 billion as equitable share to counties, while CRA on the other hand proposed KSh398 billion.

However, the CoG wanted KSh439.5 billion allocated to the 47 devolved units as equitable share, plus an additional KSh10.52 billion as Road Maintenance Levy Fund.

None of the parties involved in the discussions was ready to compromise on their figure, therefore leading to a stalemate.

While defending their proposals, governors say the additional money will help cushion county governments from the rising cost of inflation.

Also, the county bosses say the money will help bearing in mind the rising operations and maintenance cost in counties and the need for a commensurate adjustment for revenue growth.

Additionally, the governors say their proposed allocation has factored in emerging items that will occasion additional expenditure by counties such as the new mandatory National Social Security Fund (NSSF), Social Health Insurance Fund (SHIF) and the Housing Levy contributions.

“We therefore call upon the National Government to reconsider their position in view of the aforementioned budgetary items. This will allow Counties to execute their mandate and ensure efficient service delivery on their assigned functions,” the CoG asserts.