Ministry of Education spent Sh500,000 to purchase laptop, Auditor General reveals

The State Department for Higher Education has been flagged for purchasing MacBook laptops at nearly three times their budgeted cost.

The damning revelation came from a scathing audit report by Auditor General Nancy Gathungu.

The department acquired six MacBook laptops for Sh2.99 million, approximately Sh500,000 per device, despite budgeting only Sh180,000 each.

The FY2023/24 report reveals stark differences between planned and actual spending, with MacBooks budgeted at Sh180,000 but purchased at Sh499,320 each, while iPad 4 devices were budgeted at Sh360,000 but purchased at Sh460,000 each.

The department spent Sh4.01 million total on technology equipment, including Sh920,000 for two iPads, with excess expenditure of Sh2.12 million lacking proper authorization. 

"The procurement plan estimated price for each MacBook laptop was Sh180,000, but management acquired each laptop at Sh499,320," the report states, highlighting a cost overrun exceeding 175% per device.

Gathungu found the purchases violated Public Finance Management Regulation 51(2), which requires spending commitments to align with approved procurement plans based on budget allocations. 

"This resulted in expenditure of Sh2,115,920, which was not supported by an approved and updated procurement plan," the report notes.

The auditor could not confirm whether taxpayers received value for money on the Sh3.92 million spent, given the significant deviation from budgeted amounts without justification.

The revelation comes as Gathungu's broader audit exposed systemic budget absorption failures across government. 

At least 14 flagship projects have failed to utilize over half their allocated budgets, resulting in Sh304.4 billion in underutilization over five years – representing 59.1% of the total Sh515.1 billion earmarked for development.

Speaking to the National Assembly's Budget and Appropriations Committee, Gathungu warned that continued inefficiencies jeopardize critical national infrastructure and social initiatives. 

"Many of these projects now risk lapsing without achieving their intended goals," she cautioned.

Her report also revealed that taxpayers incurred Sh6.569 billion in commitment fees on undrawn loan balances paid to foreign lenders between 2020/21 and 2023/24 – funds tied to underperforming projects whose budgets remained idle.