What budget speeches will not tell you

Kenyan Treasury Cabinet Secretary John Mbadi delivered an impressive but overly long budget speech, yet the author criticizes its obsolescence as budget documents are published weeks in advance. He highlights a regional trend in East Africa diluting the Common External Tariff of 35%, allowing lobbies and oligarchs to dictate customs duties. In Kenya, allocations for surreal items like village elder allowances are announced, but the real financial picture emerges in March with delayed exchequer releases and supplementary budgets.