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{
    "id": 491725,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/491725/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 13,
    "type": "other",
    "speaker_name": "",
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    "speaker": null,
    "content": "The Chairperson should also state the monitoring and evaluation mechanism put in place to report on the feedback and success of the initiative on the lives of the elderly Kenyans. He should further explain why the amounts that were dispensed were not sufficient and uniform across the counties. Some elderly people received some amounts ranging between Kshs1,000 and Kshs2,000, but the question is whether the amounts were sufficient. Lastly, the Chairperson should state to the House the actual budget for the poor elderly people through this programme and whether it is consistent with the national Budget. Mr. Speaker, Sir, the Ministry of Labour, Social Security and Services implements four cash transfer programmes amongst them the older persons and persons with severe disabilities cash transfer programmes. This is part of the overall social protection programme through a non-contributory social assistance for most of the vulnerable citizens as envisaged in Article 43(3) of the Constitution of Kenya. Mr. Speaker, Sir, the Older Persons Cash Transfer Programme started on a pilot basis in three districts of Thika, Nyando and Busia in the Financial Year 2007/2008 with an allocation of Kshs2.4 billion and targeted 300 households with each receiving Kshs1,000 a month. This was scaled in Financial Year 2009/2010 when the Government allocated Kshs530 million which helped to cover 44 districts with 33,000 households receiving Kshs1,500 a month. In 2010/2011 Financial Year, the programme received the same amount of funding. In Financial Year 2011/2012, the programme was allocated Kshs1 billion which benefitted 36,000 households each receiving a monthly transfer of Kshs2,000. Mr. Speaker, Sir, in the Financial Year 2012/2013, the number rose to 59,000 in all the counties and sub-counties. As a result of enhanced allocation of Kshs1.5 billion in the Financial Year 2013/2014, the programme was allocated Kshs2.47 billion which facilitated up-scaling of the programme by 105,000 new beneficiaries reaching a cumulative current total of 164,000 beneficiaries in all the 290 constituencies in the 47 counties. Mr. Speaker, Sir, the numbers of beneficiaries per county are indicated in Table 1, which I have attached, totaling to 164,000 in the 290 constituencies. The allocation of the funds is based on the number of beneficiaries enrolled after a thorough targeting process. Currently, a ratio of 30 per cent and 70 per cent is applied whereby 30 per cent of the potential beneficiaries are distributed equally in the 290 constituencies. However, the 70 per cent is distributed on the basis of poverty index across the country as guided by the indexes from the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (KNBS) report. So, both the 30 per cent and 70 per cent distributions have to adhere to the pre-determined eligibility criteria which includes the following:- (i) that the potential beneficiary is 65 years old and above; (ii) poor of the poor; (iii) not a pensioner; (iv) has been a resident in that targeted area for a minimum of 12 months; and, (v) is not registered as a beneficiary in any of the other cash transfer programmes."
}