The budget making process involves three
major stages which are the pre-budget process, formulation and approval
of the budget and post budget process. In the pre-budget phase, the
citizen’s views are compiled and integrated in documents such as fiscal
strategy and budget review paper.
The citizenry are
able to make contributions by attending the county budget committee
hearings and through appointments in the county planning units. During
the second step which is the formulation and approval of the budget,
proposals from the public that include the private business sector
contribution can also be collated and submitted to the National
Treasury.
During this stage public budget hearings are
held around the country by the Budget and Appropriations Committee of
the National Assembly at the village wards and sub county levels. For
the post budget stage, the public is able to hold the government liable
to implement the budget by playing an oversight role through social
audits and citizen score cards. The legal framework governing citizen
participation in the budget making process is contained in the Kenya
Constitution 2010, the Public Finance Management Act, the County
Government Act and Urban Areas and Cities Act 2012.
While
it is envisaged that the citizen plays a crucial role in the budget
making process, the questions that need to be answered are whether the
mwanachi actually contributes in the process and whether they know the
channels through which they can provide their input during the budget
making process.
To improve citizen’s participation,
civic education ought to be conducted at the grassroots through county
civic education programmes to enlighten citizens on the contribution
they can make during the process. Building effective public
participation frameworks is therefore key.
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