The International Monetary Fund, IMF has urged members of parliament MPs, to enhance fiscal sustainability, and strengthen Public Finance Management (PFM) Act to boost revenue mobilization.
Speaking during the parliamentary caucus on network on the World Bank and IMF consultative meeting, IMF Mission Chief, Haimanot Teferra highlighted that the IMF expects the country to focus on governance of key policy reforms especially on preventing the misuse of Article 223 of the Constitution on Supplementary Budgets, strengthening revenue mobilization that is equitable with the aim of reducing the debt burden.
“IMF has high expectations on Kenya’s governance, legal frameworks, implementation of audit recommendations, full compliance of the PFM Act, sealing of corruption loopholes and modalities of addressing pending bills,” Ms. Teferra said.
During the meeting key policy reforms that would accelerate the country’s economic growth were discussed.
The caucus chaired by Mohamed Aden Daud (Wajir East) underscored Parliament’s commitment to safeguarding the country from policies that could lead to fiscal distress.
“Parliament upholds the national values and principles of governance provided under Chapter 10 (2) of the Constitution of Kenya 2010,” Daud said.
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MP Joseph Makilap (Baringo North) decried the unpredictability of the National Budget, which he said has hugely affected funding of government programs.
Dr. Wilberforce Oundo (Funyula) emphasized on transparency of public debt and the need to carry out an impact assessment before taking new loans.
MP David Mboni (Kitui Rural) lauded the IMF’s role in stabilizing the economy but reiterated that intolerance to corruption is the effective path to financial stability.
“Since people want to blame the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund, there are loopholes in revenue mobilization in many sectors including border posts which are still using manual scanners. The truth is that if we can reduce corruption by 50%, the country won’t be requesting an IMF program,” Mboni said.
The MPs and IMF mission team also deliberated on PFM reforms geared towards achieving the public debt target, application of Public Private Partnerships (PPPs) investments, privatization strategy implementation and securitization.
Daud further urged the IMF mission team to share their recommendations on the best policy reforms that will not burden Kenyans nor hurt the country’s economy.
“Share with us your thoughts on the legislative reforms on the Public Finance Management Act for this caucus to review,” Daud remarked.
By Juma Ndigo
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