The government has proposed a Ksh 3,000 monthly stipend for village elders across the country in a move aimed at formally recognising their role in supporting the National Administration.
Appearing before the National Assembly Departmental Committee on Administration and Internal Security during scrutiny of the 2026/2027 budget estimates on Wednesday, May 13, 2026, Interior Principal Secretary Dr. Raymond Omollo said the programme would benefit about 110,000 village elders nationwide.
Dr. Omollo told the committee that the Ministry of Interior had already developed a policy framework and criteria for the identification of village elders, following years of consultations and public participation.
“The conversation about village elders began in 2016 and the House actually gave directions to the ministry. It has taken almost 10 years to get us here,” said Dr. Omollo.
He credited the committee for supporting the allocation, saying without its intervention the funds would not have been included in the budget estimates.
Under the proposal, each village elder would receive a Ksh 3,000 monthly stipend beginning in the next financial year, subject to Parliament approving the policy.
“Our expectation is that we will be giving a stipend of Ksh 3,000 to each village elder and the amount that has been provisioned for will be almost enough to take us through the whole year,” he said.
The PS added that the government would ensure only elders not already benefiting from other state support programmes, such as the social safety net scheme for the elderly or community health promoter initiatives, would qualify for the stipend.
How much are MPs proposing as stipend for village elders?
Members of the committee, however, pushed for an increase in the proposed payment.
Narok West MP Gabriel Tongoyo, who chairs the committee, said while the proposal was a major step forward, the stipend should ideally match what community health promoters receive.
“We had nothing before, but maybe we should have put them at par with the community health promoters,” said Tongoyo.
Teso North MP Oku Kaunya sought clarification on the legal and administrative structure under which village elders would operate, saying the framework should clearly define their reporting hierarchy within the National Administration system.
“I hope they are anchored within the National Administration structure. If that is the case, then I would support the idea that they need to have an enhanced amount to Ksh 5,000, which would be reasonable,” said Kaunya.
MP Tongoyo acknowledged that increasing the stipend to Ksh 5,000 would significantly raise the budgetary requirement to between Ksh 5.5 billion and Ksh 6 billion annually, but said the matter could still be pursued with the Budget Committee and the National Treasury.
“The President has already pronounced himself on this issue during a meeting with chiefs. It is a conversation we can still pick up if there is a way to enhance it to at least Ksh 5,000,” he said.
The lawmakers nevertheless welcomed the initiative as the first formal government effort to recognise and facilitate village elders, who have historically worked voluntarily alongside chiefs and assistant chiefs in local administration and security matters.
