Written By Gerald Gekara | |
The government’s decision to limit foreign funding’s influence on Kenyan elections is having an impact on preparations for next year’s General Election.
The Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) is now facing a cash shortage.
The electoral agency, as well as other stakeholders in the election process, are reeling from the impact of the government’s decision to suspend direct financing of electoral systems in the country, with a deficit of Sh14.5 billion.
The IEBC had expected the government to provide an additional Sh7 billion, with the remaining Sh7.5 billion coming from donor sources.
As a result of the government’s move, players in the electoral process are already raising concerns about the condition of preparation for next year’s General Election, which is only eight months away.
Donors were responsible for supporting voter registration, civic education, election security, technology acquisition, IEBC staff training, and police and legal reforms in the 2013 and 2017 elections.
In the run-up to the 2017 General Election, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), which has been a major supporter of Kenya’s election process and systems, contributed Sh2.6 billion to the country.
This ensured institutions such as the IEBC, the Office of the Registrar of Political Parties, the Judiciary, civil society, and the media were well funded to ensure smooth elections.
Why cut Funding?
In 2020, the government wrote to donors, instructing them “to put their funding on hold and that if we need support, we will let you know,” through Foreign Affairs Cabinet Secretary Raychele Omamo.
The letter instructed donors to route all of their funds through the National Treasury, with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs being notified of the intended purpose and expected outcome.
The note to all diplomatic missions added that “This will be announced publicly through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.”
Omamo reminded donors that the “state would carry the sole prerogative to coordinate election-related needs and resource gaps that may call for cooperation,” and that the “state would hold the unique prerogative to coordinate election-related needs and resource gaps that may call for partnership.”
Donors have been left in the dark since then, with no word from the administration on whether or not they can open their purse strings.
