Ten county governments, including Nairobi, Mombasa, Wajir, Garissa and Machakos, have been flagged by the Controller of Budget (CoB) for failing to settle long-outstanding pending bills, exposing contractors and suppliers to mounting financial losses.
The CoB’s latest budget implementation report shows counties had accumulated pending bills worth Sh156.84 billion as of March 31, 2026, with more than half—Sh84 billion—remaining unpaid for more than three years.
The report attributes the backlog partly to successive county administrations failing to honour debts inherited from their predecessors, leaving businesses struggling to recover payments for goods and services already delivered. Mombasa County recorded the highest proportion of old pending bills, with 98 per cent of its outstanding obligations dating back more than three years.
Other counties with more than half of their pending bills older than three years are Wajir (80 per cent), Nairobi (76 per cent), Mandera (75 per cent), Murang’a (74 per cent), Kiambu (67 per cent), Laikipia (65 per cent), Embu (65 per cent), Machakos (54 per cent) and Garissa (52 per cent).
In contrast, the report says counties such as Baringo, Bomet, Elgeyo Marakwet, Kericho, Kirinyaga, Kitui, Kwale, Lamu, Makueni, Marsabit, Nandi, Nyandarua and Nyeri accumulated most of their pending bills during the tenure of their current governors.
Nairobi accounts for the largest share of county pending bills at Sh81.13 billion, of which Sh61.6 billion has remained unpaid for more than three years. Wajir has Sh1.94 billion in bills older than three years compared with Sh488 million accumulated within the last year. Mandera has Sh1.26 billion in bills older than three years and Sh420 million incurred during the current administration.
Murang’a owes Sh846.3 million dating back more than three years against Sh299.9 million accumulated within the past year. Kiambu has Sh3.56 billion in bills older than three years, while Laikipia has Sh852.1 million and Embu Sh830.3 million. Machakos has Sh2.85 billion in pending bills older than three years, while Garissa has Sh797.3 million.
Controller of Budget Margaret Nyakang’o warned that the ageing debts could become increasingly difficult to clear.
“This poses significant risks for County Executives in ever settling their bills as their terms come to an end shortly,” she said.
Under the Public Finance Management (County Governments) Regulations, 2015, county governments are required to prioritise settlement of eligible pending bills in the next financial year’s budget.
The report shows trade payables less than one year old stood at Sh30 billion, those aged between one and two years at Sh19.45 billion, and those between two and three years at Sh15.22 billion. Several county governments failed to adhere to approved payment plans for outstanding trade payables, while Kakamega County Executive did not provide an ageing analysis of its payables as of March 31, 2026, the report states.
