Auditor General raises concerns over incomplete projects as county only spends Sh96 million from development fund
The office of the governor in Nakuru city.
Nakuru residents are yet to benefit from Sh7billion worth of projects initiated by the county government.
A report by the Auditor General for the 2023/24 financial year shows that more than 500 projects initiated in different financial years are still at various stages of implementation despite their deadlines having expired.
The said projects are said to have gone beyond the expected completion date including the extension given for completion.
Some of the projects include the Treasury building, the Keringet high altitude stadium, the historic Afraha stadium, the Menengai and Kiamaina water projects, the County Aggregation and the Industrial Park.
The Treasury building, for example, was supposed to be completed by December 1, 2022. The deadline was extended to October 4, 2024 which has also expired.
The report further notes that Sh54 million was paid for consultancy services for structural and architectural design plans, but the said plan was not approved by the National Building Authority and the Physical Planning Department.
"Under the circumstances, value for money spent on the said project could not be confirmed," the report said.
At the Keringet Sports Centre, the deadline for the construction of the Sh122 million project was set for October 10, 2021, with no evidence of an extension.
A total of Sh96million has been spent so far, which is about 78 per cent of the total budget as of June 2024.
Three contractors have been engaged for different projects, but the work is yet to be completed despite the expiration of the deadline.
"However, physical inspection of the project revealed that the works were all incomplete and the contractor was not on site although the contract period had expired," the report reads in part.
The report also revealed that a number of projects have stalled, while others have had their budgets diverted to other projects.