NAIROBI, Kenya, Jul 23 – The High Court has allowed the implementation of the proposed Sh5 trillion National Infrastructure Fund to continue but placed it under judicial oversight by directing the National Treasury to file certified accounts and transaction reports in court every three months pending the determination of a constitutional petition challenging the fund.
In a ruling delivered on Thursday, Justice Patricia Mande declined to suspend the fund but ordered the respondents to provide regular financial disclosures to ensure transparency and accountability in the management of public resources.
The court directed the National Treasury to disclose the exact dates on which money is deposited into accounts held at the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) or any commercial bank designated under Section 40 of the Public Finance Management Act.
Justice Mande further ordered the State to submit a comprehensive record of all transactions, expenditures and allocations made from the fund.
The respondents must continue filing the certified accounts and transaction reports every three months, with the first report due on November 30, 2026, until the constitutional petition is heard and determined.
The judge said the reporting requirement is intended to maintain judicial oversight over the management and use of the fund while the court considers the constitutional questions raised by the petitioners.
The petitions, filed by Kemunto Ateka, Frego Engineering Company Limited and other parties, challenge the legality of the National Infrastructure Fund proposed by President William Ruto.
The petitioners argue that the fund creates a framework that could allow the government to spend public resources outside the constitutional system of public financial management, potentially undermining transparency, accountability and parliamentary oversight.
Although the court declined to halt the implementation of the fund at this stage, it emphasized that continuous financial reporting will ensure public accountability as the case proceeds.
The constitutional petition is expected to determine whether the establishment and operation of the National Infrastructure Fund complies with the Constitution and Kenya’s public finance management framework.
