Kenya has set aside KSh471 million for the delayed cooking gas subsidy plan in the next fiscal year, which begins in July, with the sum slated to rise to KSh820 million the following year.
This is a 203 percent increase over the current financial year’s allocation of KSh155 million.
Ukur Yatani, the National Treasury Cabinet Secretary, proposed a plan to deliver 300,000 six-kilogram LPG cylinders to low-income homes for the next three years in a draught budget presented last year.
Beneficiaries of the inaugural cooking gas subsidy plan were required to pay a reduced price of KSh2,000 for the burner and cylinder over three years, with refills capped at KSh840 at the time.
The 13kg cylinder now costs KSh3,400, up from KSh2,250 in June when the government implemented a 16 percent VAT at the start of this fiscal year. From KSh900 in June, the six-kilogram cylinder now costs KSh1,600.
During the 2016/2017 fiscal year, the Ministry of Energy launched the cooking gas subsidy plan in an effort to reduce dependency on environmentally unfriendly kerosene and charcoal, which are often used in rural and urban poor families.
However, the program’s execution was delayed by defective cylinders from certain suppliers and distribution issues at the state-owned National Oil Corporation (Nock), which was supposed to spearhead it.