Constituency Development Fund

Constituency Development Funds (CDFs) are central government funds given to members of parliament for expenditure on their constituencies, also called electoral districts. CDFs were first adopted in India. After introduction in Kenya in 2003, CDFs spread to other African countries and across the world.[1]:1

Ghana

Ghana's CDF was instituted in 1996, when members of parliament were allocated 5% of the District Assemblies Common Fund (DACF).[2]:17

India

India has two CDF systems: the Members of Parliament Local Area Development Scheme (MPLADS) at the national level and the Member of Legislative Assembly Local Area Development Fund (MLA-LAD) for the Legislative Assembly of each of India’s 28 states. The MPLADS scheme was instituted in India in 1993. Under the MPLADS, an equal amount is allocated yearly to each parliamentary constituency.[1]:27

Kenya

The Kenyan Constituency Development Fund (CDF) was introduced in 2003 during the Kibaki presidency.

The fund was designed to support constituency-level, grass-root development projects.[3] It was aimed to achieve equitable distribution of development resources across regions and to control imbalances in regional development brought about by partisan politics.[4] It targeted all constituency-level development projects, particularly those aiming to combat poverty at the grassroots.[5] The CDF program has facilitated the putting up of new water, health and education facilities in all parts of the country, including remote areas that were usually overlooked during funds allocation in national budgets.[6][7]

Funding
From the Kenyan Institute for Social Accountability[8]
  • The Constituency Development Fund was introduced in Kenya in 2003 with the passage of the CDF Act 2003 by the 9th Parliament of Kenya. The CDF Act provides that the government set aside at least 2.5% of its ordinary revenue for disbursement under the CDF program.
  • Three quarters of the amount is divided equitably between Kenya’s 210 constituencies whilst the remaining 1/4th is divided based on a poverty index to cater for poorer constituencies.
  • The constituency is the unit of political representation in Kenya of which there are 210 in the country. Each constituency is further subdivided into locations for local administrative purposes. A district is a grouping of 4-6 constituencies and before the implementation of CDF in 2003; the district was hitherto considered the unit of local development.
YearTotal Annual
CDF Allocations
2003/4KSh 1.3 billion
2004/5KSh 5.6 billion
2005/6KSh 7.2 billion
2006/7KSh 9.7 billion
2007/8KSh 10.1 billion
2008/9KSh 10.1 billion
2009/10KSh 12.0 billion
2010/11KSh 14.3 billion

Corruption

There have been many examples of, and complaints about, misuse of the funds.[9] This has led to the CDF Act 2013[10] (effectively repealing the CDF Act 2003) and significant changes to be applied in 2013.[11]

References
  1. "Constituency Development Funds: Scoping Paper | Publications". International Budget Partnership. Retrieved 2021-05-02.
  2. Tsubura, Machiko (2013). "The Politics of Constituency Development Funds (CDFs) in Comparative Perspective". Rochester, NY. SSRN 2299409. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  3. "CDF was focus of Uhuru's stimulus plan". The Standard | Online Edition. Eastandard.net. 12 June 2009. Retrieved 1 June 2010.
  4. "Constituency Development Fund". Kippra.org. 9 January 2004. Archived from the original on February 19, 2009. Retrieved 1 June 2010.
  5. "New source of funding for Kenya's rural projects". Construction News. Entrepreneur.com. Archived from the original on August 29, 2008. Retrieved 1 June 2010.
  6. "Senator hails Kenya's CDF". Office of Public Communications – Office of Government Spokesperson. Communication.go.ke. 29 November 2006. Archived from the original on 22 November 2010. Retrieved 1 June 2010.
  7. Jerry Okungu (13 November 2006). "The Beauty and Shame of Kenya's Constituency Development Fund – CDF". Afroarticles.com. Retrieved 1 June 2010.
  8. Constituency Development Fund, The (Kenyan) Institute for Social Accountability
  9. Albert van Zyl (2010). "What is Wrong with the Constituency Development Funds?". Budget Brief 2010 No. 10. International Budget Partnership.
  10. http://www.cdf.go.ke/ - Constituency Development Fund Board
  11. Laban Wanambisi (8 April 2013). "Public to Elect Constituency Development Fund Committee Members". allafrica.com.
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