Nairobi — The Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) has warned that mounting unpaid bills and a yawning budget shortfall are threatening critical preparations for the 2027 General Election, with suppliers increasingly reluctant to engage with the constitutional body.
In a presentation to the National Assembly on Tuesday, IEBC Chairperson Erastus Edung Ethekon revealed the commission is grappling with billions of shillings in verified pending payments from previous election cycles, a situation that has eroded its credibility with private suppliers and raised the cost of procurement.
While the full verified amount cited by the commission in parliamentary discussions totals Sh 4.9 billion, ongoing reporting by the media suggests the broader funding gap could be even larger when legal fees and operational shortfalls are included.
According to Ethekon, the growing pile of unpaid obligations has contributed to a supplier slump a reluctance among vendors to provide essential goods and services needed for election preparations unless payment assurances are in place.
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The effect, he said, is not limited to deferred payments but extends to higher tender prices as suppliers build in risk margins reflecting delayed settlements.
"We have pending bills that have accumulated over time which will adversely affect our operations in conducting the 2027 elections," the IEBC chair told lawmakers.
Budget Gaps
The supplier challenge compounds a broader financing crisis. The IEBC has projected that it needs Ksh 63.9 billion to conduct the full electoral cycle leading up to the 2027 polls, covering procurement of materials, voter education, staff training and legal fees.
However, the National Treasury has so far allocated only about Ksh 41 billion, leaving a Ksh 22.9 billion shortfall that risks undermining key operations.
Ethekon has appealed to Parliament and the Treasury to view the settlement of verified pending bills as an investment in electoral credibility and democratic continuity, urging expeditious action to restore supplier confidence and fiscal sustainability ahead of the election year.
The commission is also managing significant legal liabilities, including unpaid legal fees dating back to earlier election cycles, which Ethekon says have strained its limited in-house legal capacity and heightened reliance on external counsel.
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Logistical and Operational Risks
The funding constraints, the commission warns, extend beyond cash flow concerns into operational readiness, including the ability to procure critical election materials such as ballots, ballot boxes, technology kits and voter identification systems, as well as the capacity to recruit and train thousands of temporary election staff.
To mitigate supplier and procurement challenges, IEBC officials and stakeholders advocating for electoral reforms have urged early release of funds and predictable disbursement schedules that would allow tenders to be issued well before election season peaks, reducing last-minute bottlenecks seen in previous cycles.
The looming financial pressures come as the Commission also navigates complex legal and constitutional issues affecting tasks such as boundary delimitation an exercise that has already exceeded statutory timelines and is being carried out incrementally to avoid disruption to 2027 preparations.
