Kenya: Court Orders Sh10.5bn Road Fund for Counties

Nairobi — The High Court has ordered over Sh10.5 billion for counties. This funding is for road maintenance. The court found their exclusion from the Road Maintenance Levy Fund (RMLF) unconstitutional.

Justice Lawrence Mugambi ruled that the National Assembly's actions violated the Constitution. He nullified a 2024 decision that withdrew conditional grants to counties. The court also declared Section 6 of the Kenya Roads Board Act, 1999 unconstitutional. This section undermined devolution.

Justice Mugambi directed the Kenya Roads Board to disburse funds by June 30, 2025.

"This ruling affirms that resources must follow functions," he stated in his judgment. He noted that the National Assembly's decisions violated Articles 6, 10, and 186 of the Constitution.

The Kenya Roads Board must now disburse Sh10,522,211,853 to county governments by June 30, 2025. The case challenged Parliament's decisions to exclude counties from RMLF funds for two financial years.

On September 28, 2023, and August 13, 2024, Parliament denied counties over Sh10.5 billion in conditional grants for road maintenance. They relied on Section 6 of the Kenya Roads Board Act, which was deemed unconstitutional.

Petitioners argued this action violated the 2010 Constitution. This Constitution assigns specific road maintenance roles to counties and entitles them to corresponding funding.