Counties in Kenya are facing a deadline to transition to a Unified Human Resource (UHR) Information System, with Controller of Budget Margaret Nyakango emphasizing the importance of this migration to combat pilferage in paying workers. Currently, the counties are utilizing a mix of manual systems and Integrated Payroll & Personnel Database (IPPD), which has been susceptible to fraud due to the loopholes in manual processes that enable abuse.
The move towards implementing the UHR system is in alignment with commitments made by the National Treasury to the International Monetary Fund last year to address corruption in worker payments. Ms. Nyakango highlighted that as of the end of the financial year in June, none of the counties had completed the shift to the unified system, underscoring the urgent need for compliance before the October 1 deadline. The adoption of a unified platform aims to streamline the management of staff salaries and benefits at both national and county government levels, with the goal of eliminating double payments and reducing financial irregularities.