Deputy President Kithure Kindiki has affirmed government commitment in supporting the devolution, 15 years since its inception.

The DP dismissed any suggestion that the Kenya Kwanza administration intends to undermine devolution, asserting that the devolved system is now too entrenched to be reversed.

Speaking during the opening of the 27th Ordinary Session of the Intergovernmental Budget and Economic Council (IBEC) at his Karen office, Kindiki assured governors and stakeholders that the government remains fully committed to supporting and strengthening devolution.

“Nobody has the capacity to roll back devolution. It is so strong that no administration has the capacity to roll back even an inch of devolution,” he said.

Kindiki reiterated that Kenya’s governance model is designed to promote cooperation—not competition—between the national and county governments.

“The Constitution establishes one government, with executive authority exercised at two levels—national and county. These levels must not compete but instead work seamlessly to move the country forward,” he said.

He cited successful examples of collaboration, including joint implementation of health programmes like the Community Health Promoters and Taifa Care, commending county governors for their support and coordination.

“We are already undertaking some concurrent functions seamlessly and I must commend the governors for making it work,” Kindiki noted.

However, the DP acknowledged financial allocation to devolved units which has crippled service delivery.

“Even countries that have had devolved systems for over 180 years, like Australia, still have wrangles on allocation of money and push and pull on how much to be shared and what should remain at the centre,” he said.

On fiscal matters, Kindiki assured the Council that the national government had kept its funding obligations. So far, Sh387.26 billion (99 per cent of the 2024/2025) county allocations has been disbursed. The remaining Sh17 billion for June will be released before the end of the financial year.

“We don’t have any pending allocations apart from June’s, which will be released on time,” he assured.

The Council of Governors (CoG) chairman Ahmed Abdullahi welcomed the assurance, but urged the national government to promote structured collaboration in project implementation and policy rollout to avoid duplication and confusion on the ground.

“Where there is structured collaboration we will work together, like we do in SHA. When everyone was fighting it, we but we stuck out our necks, and now everyone is on board,” said Abdullahi.

The leaders renewed commitment to deepen intergovernmental cooperation, prioritise service delivery, and uphold the spirit of devolution as enshrined in the Constitution.

The IBEC meeting brought together senior officials from the national and county governments to deliberate on key issues related to finance, budgeting, and economic planning.