The Institute for Social Accountability-TISA has urged the government to cut spending by merging state agencies with duplicated roles, using road management as an example. TISA Head of Programs Alexander Riithi made the call. He also asked for proper implementation of zero-based budgeting to show that government spending is justified.
Kenya’s public debt is a growing concern for lawmakers and economists, and every shilling spent on interest is a shilling not available for services. The Institute for Social Accountability-TISA argues that part of the answer lies in how government is organised. Its proposal focuses on administrative costs rather than on the services citizens depend on.
Alexander Riithi used roads to illustrate the problem. Five bodies share responsibility for different parts of road management: the Ministry of Roads, the Kenya Roads Board, KeNHA, KURA and KeRRA. Each has its own mandate and budget, which makes overlap difficult to see from outside government. Merging agencies with similar functions, he said, would reduce administrative costs.
Riithi also called for proper implementation of zero-based budgeting. Under that approach, departments must justify each budget line rather than carry forward last year’s allocation. The method can reveal programmes that no longer serve a clear purpose and it places the burden on agencies to show what their spending achieves before funds are released.
Mergers are not simple to carry out. Each agency has its own staff, legal mandate and governance structure, so consolidation usually requires legislation and careful transfer of assets and people.
Such reforms can take months and they may meet resistance from officials who would lose positions or influence. Without a clear timetable, merged agencies can also lose institutional knowledge during the transition.
The debate matters because the government is trying to meet spending needs without adding to borrowing. Every shilling saved from duplicated costs could go to services or to repaying debt. TISA’s proposal links two questions that are often treated separately: how much government spends and how well it is organised.
Zero-based budgeting, unlike incremental budgeting, starts each cycle from zero, so every programme has to be justified again. That discipline could help expose agencies whose functions have overlapped for years. Its success would depend on whether the Treasury and Parliament enforce the process consistently.
The next signal will be whether the Treasury or the affected ministries announce a review of road sector agencies or a timetable for zero-based budgeting.
