Kenyan counties owed Sh100bn in unpaid land rates and levies
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Businesses, homes and individuals owe county governments Sh100.38 billion in unpaid levies and fees, including land rates, deepening cash-flow strains on Kenya's devolved units.
Businesses, homes and individuals hold Sh100.38 billion in unpaid levies and fees owed to county governments, compounding cash-flow woes for Kenya's devolved units and hampering service delivery.
Disclosures by the Controller of Budget's office show Nairobi accounts for 58 per cent of the debt, or Sh59.9 billion, followed by Nakuru at Sh12.57 billion or 12.5 per cent, while Kiambu accounts for the third-largest share at 4.8 per cent, or Sh4.82 billion.
The unpaid levies and fees include land and property rates, way-leave fees and advertisement fees, underlining the challenges counties face in generating their own revenue.
Land rates are the most defaulted charge, with Nairobi alone grappling with unpaid rates of Sh51.34 billion from that revenue stream. Controller of Budget Margaret Nyakang'o attributed the high stock of arrears to weak enforcement across the counties, noting that manual collection remains a major issue.
The total arrears dropped by Sh2.75 billion from Sh103.1 billion in the year ended June 2025, signalling marginal gains in the counties' quest to recover the dues. Counties collected Sh55.69 billion in own-source revenue in the year ended June 2026 against a target of Sh108.4 billion.
Only 14 counties had no arrears for own-source revenue in the year to June 2026, down from 15 previously. Dr Nyakang'o said most of the counties with no arrears had automated their collection platforms.