Nairobi County has once again come under fire for its reckless use of public money, with a shocking Sh630 million spent on foreign travels by its leaders.
At the center of this controversy are the Members of County Assembly (MCAs), who have turned international trips into routine outings funded by taxpayers. While they justify these journeys as opportunities to learn from other countries, the reality on the ground shows little to no impact from these expensive expeditions.
Instead, Nairobi residents are left to struggle with poor services, poor state of the roads, and underfunded hospitals while their leaders fly across the globe.
The figures were exposed in recent financial reviews that show Nairobi is one of the leading counties in travel expenditure. Overall, the county spent Sh863 million on both local and international travel during the 2024–2025 financial year, far more than most counties.
Of this, the executive arm alone accounted for Sh128.4 million on international trips, the highest among all devolved units.
The MCAs have been singled out as the biggest culprits, often embarking on costly trips to Europe, Dubai, and Singapore under the excuse of benchmarking.
These activities rarely translate into practical solutions for the city, exposing the wasteful nature of such spending.
This is not the first time Nairobi’s leadership has been caught in this habit.
In the previous financial year, they spent about Sh658 million on foreign travel, sparking outrage at a time when Kenyans were tightening their belts under a tough economy.
Critics argue that MCAs approve these huge travel budgets deliberately because they personally benefit from hefty allowances and per diems, while projects that could uplift ordinary residents remain stalled.
This trend has persisted even after Kenyans, led mostly by the youth, took to the streets in 2024 to protest government waste and corruption. Despite promises of discipline and accountability, counties like Nairobi continue to ignore the calls.
The human cost of this extravagance is felt most in the city’s informal settlements, where families live without reliable water supply, proper drainage, or functioning health centers. In areas such as Kibera and Mathare, residents face overflowing sewage and daily shortages of clean water.
The contrast between this suffering and the luxury hotels and destinations enjoyed by MCAs abroad is glaring and has widened the gap of trust between leaders and the people they represent.
Reports also show that Nairobi’s wasteful culture is part of a bigger problem across Kenya, where counties collectively spent more than Sh16.2 billion on trips in just one year. Yet Nairobi, being the wealthiest and with the largest budget, carries greater responsibility. Spending Sh630 million on foreign travel is not just misuse; it is a betrayal of the very purpose of devolution, which was meant to bring services closer to the people.
Oversight bodies have raised the alarm, with the Controller of Budget warning that such reckless expenditure is a barrier to real development. Calls for stricter controls, such as capping travel budgets and demanding accountability reports, have been made but often ignored.
Unless there is firm action, Nairobi’s MCAs will continue to put their own comfort above the needs of millions of residents.
