Controller of Budget names key State organs sabotaging new Controller of Budget

Controller of Budget Agnes Odhiambo has identified Government ministries, departments and agencies that are yet to migrate to the Integrated Financial Management Information System.

The Office of Controller of Budget has identified ministries, departments and State agencies that are yet to migrate to the Integrated Financial Management Information System (IFMIS), a  computer-based system that automates and stores key financial information.

Those not IFMIS-compliant are the Independent Police Oversight Authority, the Commission for Implementation of the Constitution, National Gender and Equality Commission, Witness Protection Agency, Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission, National Intelligence Service, Teachers Service Commission, Ministry of Defence and Kenya National Human Rights Commission.

The Controller of Budget’s list is contained in a National Government Budget Implementation Review report for the first quarter of the current 2014/15 financial year.

Failure to adopt IFMIS has affected the timeliness, accuracy and completeness of financial reports by ministries, departments and agencies.

“There is therefore need for the National Treasury to ensure that all ministries, departments and agencies adopt IFMIS. This will enhance completeness, accuracy, and timeliness in government-wide financial reporting,” said Controller of Budget Agnes Odhiambo.

It is still unclear why the State operations are yet to migrate to the new accounting and information software. Only the Teachers Service Commission (TSC) has openly opposed the system, leading to delays in the processing of November salaries for more than 280,000 teachers.

Planned shift

In a letter dated November 26, 2014 to the IFMIS Director at the National Treasury, the Teachers Service Commission asked for a meeting with Central bank of Kenya and National Treasury, to discuss implementation of IFMIS.

TSC argued that the current payroll infrastructure it runs is superior and has many benefits that would be lost in the planned shift.

The goal of IFMIS is to increase access to information while decreasing long-term costs. The initial investment in terms of time and money on IFMIS is high, but the improved financial transparency and information access usually offsets its initial expense.

The primary features that distinguish an integrated financial management information system from other computer systems are the reduction of data entry duplication; implementation of internal controls for transactions, reporting and information entry; and the standardisation of data classifications for financial events.

Delayed submission

While most ministries, departments and agencies are now on the IFMIS platform, the Controller of Budget has raised concerns that there is the challenge of delayed submission of expenditure reports by these State organs.

This results into late publication of the Budget Implementation Review Report for submission to Parliament and other stakeholders. The Controller of Budget has also raised issues with incomplete reports from State organs as well as discrepancies, all of which require reconciliation.

All State organs are required to submit their financial returns by  the tenth of the month following end of each quarter to ensure timely preparation of the budget implementation reports.