By Miraj Guo | May 15, 2026
The Office of the Auditor-General (OAG) has officially launched the construction of a new regional headquarters in Makande, Mombasa County, in a major move aimed at decentralizing audit services and strengthening financial accountability across Kenya’s coastal region.
The modern regional office, whose construction is expected to take 14 months, will serve as the central audit coordination hub for the six coastal counties of Mombasa, Kwale, Kilifi, Tana River, Lamu, and Taita Taveta.
The groundbreaking ceremony was led by Nancy Gathungu, who said the project forms part of a broader national strategy to improve efficiency in public sector auditing and reduce operational costs linked to rented office spaces.
According to Dr. Gathungu, the rapid expansion of devolved government institutions has significantly increased the workload of the Auditor-General’s office, stretching the capacity of existing regional offices in Mombasa and Kilifi.
Currently, the coastal region has only 84 audit staff tasked with overseeing more than 780 public institutions, including county governments, county assemblies, schools, technical training institutes, health facilities, and water and sanitation companies.
She noted that the current rented offices are heavily congested and no longer suitable for the growing demands of public audits in the region.
“By investing in permanent office infrastructure, we are not only improving working conditions for our officers but also ensuring prudent use of taxpayers’ money in the long term,” Dr. Gathungu said during the ceremony.
The Makande regional headquarters is expected to improve coordination among audit teams, streamline data collection, and reduce delays in the release of audit reports affecting county and national government institutions across the Coast.
The project is part of the OAG’s nationwide infrastructure expansion program that has already seen similar regional offices established in Garissa, Kakamega, Eldoret, and Embu.
The event brought together senior directors and technical officials from the OAG headquarters in Nairobi, regional auditors and administrators from Mombasa and Kilifi offices, representatives from Mombasa County administration, engineers, architects, and officials from the National Construction Authority (NCA) Coast region.
Also present were contractors overseeing the project, communications officers, journalists, editors, and correspondents from various national and local media houses.
During her address, Dr. Gathungu challenged the media to play a more active role in simplifying audit reports and financial oversight information for ordinary citizens.
She noted that many audit reports contain highly technical financial and accounting language that remains difficult for members of the public to understand.
“When citizens understand how public funds are spent or mismanaged, they become empowered to demand accountability from leaders and institutions,” she stated.
The Auditor-General emphasized that the media remains a critical partner in promoting transparency, civic awareness, and responsible governance by translating complex audit findings into simple and accessible information for wananchi.
Once completed, the Makande facility is expected to significantly enhance oversight operations in the coastal region while strengthening public confidence in the management of public resources.
