Counties have until October 1 to migrate their management systems to a unified human resource platform used in the public service in an effort to curb pilferage, especially in paying workers.
The 47 devolved units have less than two weeks to move to the UNHR Information System for the public service, according to the controller of budget Margaret Nyakango.
The counties are currently using a mix of manual and Integrated Payroll Personnel Database IPPD that have been a convenient platform for fraud given that manual systems are prone to abuse.
Migration to the UHR system is part of the commitments that the National Treasury made to the International Monetary Fund last year in a bid to tame graft in the payment of workers at national and county levels.
The Head of the Public Service, Ms Nyakango said that all County governments, including the County Assemblies, must migrate to the Unified Human Resource HR Information System for the public service by 1st October 2022, in line with the guidelines of the Head of the Public Service.
Ms Nyakango said that no of the counties had shifted to the unified system by the end of June.
The payments of staff salaries and other benefits at the counties continue to grow every year because of the system gaps, crowding out funds for basic services like health and construction of roads, water and sewerage lines.
The push for counties to switch to a common system that brings together all public entities comes amid increasing cases of manual payments worth billions of shillings.
The CoB report shows that counties paid salaries worth Sh 15.63 billion a year ago, with Ms Nyakango singling out the payments for possible fraud.
A majority of counties involved in the payments cited lack of personal numbers for dozens of staff, leading to fears about the existence of ghost workers on their payrolls.
The information on public service numbers, wages, and allowances will be provided by the new system, helping to avoid double payment of workers at the two levels of government.
Treasury made the commitment last year that all national and county government workers will be kept on the unified system as part of reforms to improve transparency.
Ms Nyakango said that her office will not approve requisitions from county entities that will not have complied by October 1.
Transparency weaknesses have resulted in gaps for some workers to get double pay at both counties and national governments as a result of the management of two payrolls.
A united system will help track national and county government entities that pay salaries and other benefits outside the prescribed caps, according to the Salaries and Remuneration Commission last year.