Auditor-General Nancy Gathungu has revealed that Sh243 billion in National Government- Constituency Development Fund (NG-CDF) board bursaries disbursed over the last five years may not have benefitted the needy cases.

The NG-CDF Board has also come under scrutiny over the funds’ administration challenges by failing to ensure adequate and consistent monitoring of the school bursary and scholarship programme, amid doubts about the funds’ prudent use.

Ms Gathungu, in a 2026 performance audit on the provision of bursaries and scholarships by the NG-CDF to learning institutions before parliament, also flagged the delayed disbursement of funds.

Ms Gathungu cited the adverse effect the delayed disbursement has had on operations, especially day schools, “which highly depended on bursary funds to run the meals programme.”

The net effect of this, the audit reveals, is that “learners would be sent home for school fees, thereby negatively affecting their learning and limiting their retention at school.”

According to the audit, the board “has failed to follow up with constituencies to ensure consistent reporting, which compromises the reliability of data that is submitted for national reporting.”

“As such, the board does not maintain a master list and cannot confidently account for the bursary funds disbursed over the years,” the audit reveals.

Of the Sh243.5 billion allocated to the fund in the last five years, Sh10.09 billion, which is five percent, was apportioned to cover the board's administrative expenses, with Sh191.71 billion, about 95 percent, disbursed to the 290 constituencies as development grants to support government projects.

Over the period under review, constituencies spent Sh55.72 billion on bursaries and scholarships to support 4.9 million learners.

Despite marginal successes, the board has not ensured the timely disbursement of funds to learning institutions.

“Funds are frequently disbursed late and are misaligned with the school calendar. These delays create a ripple effect, often leading to potential beneficiaries missing classes,” the audit says, adding, “ultimately, the lost class time results in an economic loss and the fund's objective of enhancing learner retention is compromised.”

The audit notes that the board “has not adopted an efficient mode of funds disbursement.”

The current use of cheques is uneconomical and “encounters challenges such as loss, misplacement, and errors, which hinder the timely crediting of beneficiary accounts.”

“This preferred mode of disbursement also attracts additional costs for delivery and allowances for clerks, decreasing the funds available for bursary and scholarship.”

Unlike a financial audit, which checks the accuracy of accounts, a performance audit focuses on whether the organisation is achieving its goals and providing “value for money.”

The audit sampled 23 constituencies across six counties of Nairobi, Kirinyaga, Makueni, Kilifi, Kisii and Narok for the financial years 2021/22 to 2024/25.

The constituencies sampled during the period under review are Embakasi Central, Kibra, Kasarani, Dagoretti South, Embakasi South, Mbooni, Makueni, Kaiti, Kibwezi East, Ndia, Gichugu and Kirinyaga Central.

The others are Mwea, Kilgoris, Narok West, Narok East, Narok North, Nyaribari Masaba, Bomachoge Chache, Kitutu Chache South, Bobasi, Ganze and Malindi. Within the 23 constituencies, 177 beneficiary learning institutions were appraised.

The NG-CDF is allocated at least 2.5 percent of the national government's annual share of revenue each financial year, as determined by the Division of Revenue Act.

The fund may also receive other monies accrued to or donated to the board from any other source.

The audit also notes that the NG-CDF board "has failed to follow up with constituencies to ensure consistent reporting, which compromises the reliability of data that is submitted for national reporting.”

As such, the audit says, the board does not maintain a master list and cannot therefore confidently account for the bursary funds disbursed over the years.

Sustained public outcries have amplified cases of learners missing school due to a lack of fees and the perceived inequalities in the award of bursaries and scholarships.

Despite multiple education funding mechanisms, many eligible learners continue to be left out as a result of delays, inconsistencies and weak accountability in the allocation process, which Ms Gathungu wants addressed.

“Additionally, the follow-up of beneficiaries in their respective learning institutions is inadequate, leading to a lack of accountability regarding whether beneficiaries genuinely exist and actually receive the funds,” the audit discloses.

The audit has also flagged inadequate acknowledgement of bursary funds by learning institutions, which it says “further aggravates the lack of accountability” by the NG-CDF board in the management of the funds.

According to the International Organization of Supreme Audit Institutions (INTOSAI) of which the Office of the Auditor-General (OAG) has membership, a performance audit is an independent and objective examination of an organization’s programmes, activities or systems “to determine if they are operating effectively, efficiently and economically.”

The 2020 NG-CDF guidelines for the administration of bursary schemes require constituency fund account managers to submit quarterly reports to the board as per the bursary reporting tool.

This quarterly reporting enables the board to track the progress of implementation of the programme. It also ensures that the board maintains up-to-date and comprehensive data on all beneficiaries across constituencies, which supports the generation of a national beneficiary master list.

The bursary beneficiary reporting tool issued in 2023 requires constituencies to capture specific beneficiary data, including the student's name, registration number, NEMIS number, institution, gender and expected year of completion.

The tool should also capture the student's level of study and learners with special needs, as well as disbursement amounts per level of institution and acknowledgement receipt reference number.

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