Let's Make Nairobi Work: KSh 10.6b Revenue Highlights Johnson Sakaja's One Year In Office

• Johnson Sakaja is happy that during his first year in office as the capital city's governor, the county managed to raise the highest amount of revenue of KSh 10.6 billion
• The county chief attributed the development to sealing of loopholes that were leaking county resources, indicating that he is aiming to raise KSh 19 billion in the current financial year
• Accusations of corruption and payment of county resources to companies that neither delivered services nor goods to Nairobi are among issues tainting Sakaja's reign

Nairobi Governor Johnson Sakaja is marking his one full year in office this week after taking over the country's richest county on August 25, 2022.

When did Johnson Sakaja win Nairobi governorship?

He took over the instruments of power from former governor Anne Kananu who served shortly after Mike Sonko's ouster with the management of the capital city largely under the obsolete Nairobi Metropolitan Services (NMS).

Ahead of Sakaja's reign, Nairobi had witnessed a back and forth push and pull supremacy battles in the executive and County Assembly that to a significant extent, hindered service delivery to Nairobians.

Some of most affected functions were revenue collection with Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) having taken charged courtesy of the NMS takeover.

Nairobi county's revenue

In the Financial Year 2021/2022, the county collected KSh 8.97 billion which was rated as below expectation by stakeholders and authorities with NMS having projected KSh 15 billion.

In 2018/2019, the county collected KSh 10.25b, which was KSh 139 million more than the 2017/2018 collection of KSh 10.11 billion.

This means that the KSh 10.6 billion collected during part of Sakaja's first year is the highest ever recorded since the devolution dispensation with the county chief attributing this to the sealing of loopholes that were contributing to the leaking of public funds.

Nairobi county cartels

"When I took the oath of office, I promised Nairobi residents that no public funds will be looted, and it is through safeguarding what we have collected that we have been able to hit this record amount of revenue ever collected by this county since devolution came into place," said the governor whose campaign slogan was "Let's Make Nairobi Work."

This development comes shortly after a Senate Watchdog Committee report indicated that the county failed to declare a staggering KSh 18.46 billion in own-source revenue in the financial years between 2016 and 2019.

Sakaja further told TUKO.co.ke that he aims to collect KSh 19.9 billion in own source revenue in the Financial Year 2023-2024.

"This year and next year I am targeting to collect KSh 19 billion. I have trust in the team that I am working with to meet this expectation even as we seek to enhance revenue collection," Sakaja said.

According to Sakaja, his administration was planning to raise an additional KSh 1 billion from the property market.

Land rates in Nairobi

This will be achieved through the implementation of the newly introduced sectional property rates that target individual houses on apartment blocks.

"Completion of capturing Geographical Information System (GIS) will help us improve our land rates collection systems and boost our revenue by the end of the current financial year.

Land rates are currently charged based on the 2019 valuation roll. We have estimated that the number of ratable properties will increase from the current 181,000 to 241,000," said Sakaja.

TUKO.co.ke also established that Sakaja's administration is set to restructure the single business permit codes which will categorise businesses as either hyper, mega, large, medium, small or mini in order to enhance fairness in payment rates and compliance.

The governor cited improvements in the health sector, environment, roads and infrastructure and taming of land grabbing as parts of the areas where accountability has been enhanced to sustain improved service delivery.

Garbage collection in Nairobi

Data from City Hall shows that KSh 244 million worth of medical supplies has been used and an Intensive Care Unit (ICU) centre opened at Mama Lucy Hospital are part of notable developments.

Nairobi County Director of Environment John Malawi told TUKO.co.ke that the county had collected at least 1 million metric tons of garbage and hired 3,500 people under the Green Army Programme aimed at planting trees in the greening of Nairobi campaign.

"There has been notable improvement in garbage collection in the city. Currently, the collection is being done by 85 contractors hired to dispense their services to all the 17 sub-counties that make Nairobi," Malawi said.

Sakaja's administration is also boasting of rehabilitation of 50kms of roads and restoration of damaged streetlights and installation of new ones.

"The county intends to hire 1,000 constables to enhance security, order and compliance to city by-laws," Sakaja disclosed.

However, Sakaja’s one year reign has also had its fair share of problems and challenges, unemployment making it to the list of top hitches.

Unemployment and corruption in Nairobi

City residents have openly called out the governor of not doing enough to tame unemployment, especially among the youth contrary to his pledges.

The county is also battling allegations of corrupt dealings, with the latest being payment of millions of shillings to firms that allegedly supplied air to City Hall, a matter that is being actively pursued by the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI).

Sakaja's ambitious multimillion school feeding programme is also facing uncertainty after a court issued orders halting its implementation ahead of determination of queries raised.

Nonetheless, Sakaja insisted that he has set a foundation on which he will make Nairobi to work.