Embu tops 2024/25 county fiscal index at 0.689; Kisumu last at 0.285
Key points
- Embu led the 2024/25 County Fiscal Performance Measurement Index with a score of 0.689.
- Kisumu posted the weakest score at 0.285; Nairobi and several other counties also sat near the bottom band.
- Narok scored 0.608 (B); Wajir also earned a B, lifting top-tier counties from two to three.
- National average index barely moved: 0.469 in 2023/24 to 0.471 in 2024/25.
0.689 versus 0.285: Embu sits at the top of the Parliamentary Budget Office’s 2024/25 County Fiscal Performance Measurement Index while Kisumu anchors the bottom, according to a report launched at Parliament Buildings and covered by Eastleigh Voice on 7 August 2026.
The index bundles budget implementation, development spending, own-source revenue, audit outcomes, wage bills and pending bills into one comparable score. Embu improved from a prior “C” band; Narok held a strong 0.608 “B”; Wajir also took a “B”, expanding the top cluster from two counties to three.
A national average that barely budged
Across all counties the overall index edged from 0.469 in 2023/24 to 0.471 in 2024/25 — progress so thin it reads as stagnation once you leave the podium. That means a handful of well-scored counties are not yet pulling the devolution average into a different performance class.
Bottom-band names flagged in the coverage include Kisumu at 0.285, with Nairobi City, Kakamega, Busia, Bomet, Baringo, Lamu, Kajiado and Bungoma also listed among weaker performers in the same reporting. Local executives usually dispute methodology; the PBO frame is still the public benchmark senators will wave in hearings.
How residents can use the scorecard
Development-share of budget, pending-bill stock and audit opinions are the three lines households can demand in plain language at county budget days. A high composite score that hides unpaid contractors is a paper victory; a low score with a published recovery plan is more honest politics.
National desk: Kenya News. Verified figures: Embu 0.689, Kisumu 0.285, Narok 0.608, national mean 0.471, launch week August 2026. Full annex tables from PBO remain the primary source for ward-level arguments.
Based on Eastleigh Voice reporting of the Parliamentary Budget Office index. PBO tables control exact county ranks.
