The government increased the budgetary allocation to pensions by Sh35 billion during the current fiscal year, but disbursement of the funds still continues to be hampered by liquidity challenges.
“The allocation for Pensions and Gratuities for FY 2024/2025 amounted to Sh199.37 billion, revised to Sh223.15 billion in Supplementary Estimates I, compared to Sh187.50 billion allocated in FY 2023/2024 ,” the COB noted.
The National Treasury’s delays in releasing funds, coupled with a downtime of the system used to manage pensions saw pensioners miss out on Sh34 billion payments in just three months, underlining the impact of the twin problems on retirees.
During the three months ending September 2024, the government paid Sh32 billion pensions and gratuities, which was 14 percent of the annual pensions budget of Sh223 billion, notes the Controller of Budget (CoB).
