- The report which examined 400 emergency fiscal policy packages in 120 countries
- Accountability was undermined by the lack of adequate information on the implementation of Covid-19 response policies.
Image: JOHN KAMAU
Kenya is among countries that cannot fully account for Covid-19 relief funds especially on donations by individuals and corporates.
A global accountability scorecard by the International Budget Partnership released last week adds that the country is dilly-dallying in implementing policies to tackle the pandemic that has since killed at least 4,000 people since March last year.
The report which examined 400 emergency fiscal policy packages in 120 countries across the globe looked at transparency, accountability, oversight and participation.
Kenya demonstrated limited transparency, accountability and public participation in handling its emergency fiscal policy package. This, despite adequate oversight.
According to the report, while the government provided adequate macroeconomic and aggregate budget information on the relief package, it failed to provide details on how the funding was allocated and spent.
''As a result, oversight bodies such as Parliament and civil society groups have struggled to hold the government accountable,'' IBP said in a statement.
The report adds that although the Parliament worked swiftly instituting policies to respond to the crisis, including a supplementary budget and tax relief measures to cushion citizens from the economic hardships of Covid-19, the implementation of the policies faced hurdles.
According to IBP, accountability was undermined by the lack of adequate information on the implementation of Covid-19 response policies.
''Not just on the amount of money spent, but also on the actual impact that this is having on more disadvantaged and vulnerable groups, such as women and those living in poverty,'' the lobby group said.
For instance, up to Sh3.6 billion (68 per cent of the allocated budget) under the emergency response project had not been spent by the end of FY 2019/20.
The National Social Safety Net Programme also failed to spend Sh5.8 billion of its recurrent allocation and none of the targeted households were reached for the cash transfer programme, which intended to alleviate the economic effects of the pandemic on those with vulnerable incomes.
In April, an almost similar report tracking expenditure of Covid-19 relief funds revealed that Kenya channeled a mere one per cent of pandemic-related bailout funds to SMEs despite having a credit guarantee scheme and on-lending funds by banks.
The report by the Financial Transparency Coalition (FTC) and partners shows the informal private received no financial support from the government despite kitty being set aside.
Abraham Rugo Muriu, IBP country manager in Kenya said the country could make significant strides in providing greater opportunity for civil society to inform and influence deeply consequential decisions the government is making around Covid-19 relief spending.
Generally, based on the findings, the lobby group believes it is imperative for governments to take immediate action on a set of measures to address the accountability shortcomings in their Covid-19 fiscal policy responses.
''The crisis is far from over and “keeping the receipts” is not enough. The measures we propose are not difficult for most governments to achieve, using existing data and resources,'' IBP said.
The budget experts have given detailed recommendations on how governments can enhance public accountability and transparency.
Some of those measures include publishing monthly progress reports on policy implementation or regularly updating implementation information on web portals.
It also wants disclosure of all details related to procurement contracts linked to emergency spending