Category: Business Daily

Kenya has given X owner Elon Musk a three-month ultimatum to establish a local office in the country, in a move aimed at tightening regulation and improving oversight of the platform’s operations.

The government has warned that it could suspend X if the directive is not met.

The State says the requirement is intended to curb rising cases of cyberbullying, deepfakes, and the spread of sexually explicit content online. ICT Cabinet Secretary William Kabogo said Kenya is stepping up pressure on global technology companies to comply with local laws and accountability standards.

‘For Elon Musk’s platform (X), we have given them temporary operating licences on condition that in the next three months, they must have an office in Kenya,’ Mr Kabogo told the Senate. ‘They must operate subject to our local laws.’

He added that the same approach is being applied to other tech giants such as Meta and TikTok, arguing that local offices would ensure faster response to complaints and enforcement of regulations.

Lawmakers have raised concern over increasing online harassment, cyberbullying, and a surge in AI-generated manipulated media, commonly referred to as deepfakes.

They also cited the spread of sexually explicit content on social media platforms as a growing risk, especially for young users. Kabogo warned that the Communications Authority (CA) would take action against platforms that breach Kenyan regulations, including suspension of services where necessary.

The directive places Kenya in a direct regulatory standoff with Musk, whose estimated fortune of about $826 billion (approximately Sh105.8 trillion) far exceeds Kenya’s annual economic output.

X is owned by Musk’s artificial intelligence firm xAI, while his aerospace company SpaceX controls Starlink, which is already licensed in Kenya as an internet service provider.

Starlink has rapidly expanded in the country since 2023, offering satellite internet services that have disrupted the telecoms market. It has also partnered with local operators such as Safaricom and Airtel to improve rural connectivity and expand coverage.

In addition to its ISP licence, Starlink has received temporary approvals from the Communications Authority to test direct-to-cell satellite connectivity in partnership with Airtel. However, it remains unclear whether Kabogo’s remarks relate to these approvals or broader licensing conditions for tech companies operating in Kenya.

Kenya’s push mirrors earlier regulatory actions against TikTok, which in 2023 agreed to establish a Nairobi office after parliamentary pressure over explicit content concerns. Lawmakers had initially pushed for a ban but later settled on stricter content moderation and compliance requirements.

Unlike TikTok, X does not currently have an office in Africa. Musk closed Twitter’s Ghana office after acquiring the platform in 2022, as part of global cost-cutting measures. However, X later established a legal presence in Nigeria following regulatory pressure linked to a seven-month suspension of the platform in that country.

When President William Ruto launched the Hustler Fund barely two months after taking office in 2022, he presented it as a financial revolution meant to free millions of small traders from shylocks and punitive digital lenders.

The President spoke passionately about boda boda riders, market traders or mama mbogas, and small entrepreneurs trapped in cycles of expensive debt and economic vulnerability.

He promised a new economic order built around affordable credit, savings and dignity for ordinary Kenyans struggling at the bottom of the economic pyramid.

‘We are establishing a culture of saving, investment and social security,’ Dr Ruto said at the launch of the programme in November 2022, describing the fund as the cornerstone of his bottom-up economic model.

Less than four years later, the National Treasury has quietly begun withdrawing taxpayer support from the flagship programme, signalling a policy shift within the Kenya Kwanza administration.

Development budget estimates tabled in Parliament show the government has allocated zero shillings to the Financial Inclusion Fund, popularly known as the Hustler Fund, in the next fiscal year starting July, a situation projected to persist in budget cycles thereafter.

The decision marks a turn for one of the most politically symbolic projects of Dr Ruto’s presidency.

The fund was allocated Sh20 billion in its launch year, but this was scaled down to Sh5 billion during its first full budget year in 2023/24, followed by Sh2 billion in 2024/25 and a sharply reduced Sh300 million allocation in the current financial year ending in June.

The budget allocations are ending before the government fulfils even half of the Sh50 billion President Ruto pledged to inject into the programme when he assumed office. Official records show the Exchequer had released only Sh14.8 billion to the fund by June 2025.

The shortfall highlights the growing strain between the political ambition behind the programme and the reality of increasingly constrained public finances.

Treasury officials insist the move does not amount to abandonment of the fund, arguing it was always designed to operate as a revolving facility financed by loan repayments rather than endless taxpayer injections.

Albert Mwenda, the director-general for budget, fiscal and economic affairs at the National Treasury, defended the removal of funding on Friday.

‘Given the initial capital, the fund is adequately funded at the current uptake of loans. Please note that it was intended to be a revolving fund,’ Mr Mwenda said.

His explanation reflects a shift taking shape within government as pressure mounts on the Treasury to contain spending amid rising debt servicing obligations and growing fiscal strain. As the Hustler Fund is losing direct budget support, another youth-focused programme is rapidly gaining prominence within Treasury spending plans.

Budget allocations to the World Bank-backed National Youth Opportunities Towards Advancement programme, popularly known as NYOTA, have been retained, suggesting the government is pivoting from direct lending towards job creation, skills development and enterprise support.

NYOTA has been allocated Sh4.78 billion in the current financial year, and will get Sh1.6 billion in next fiscal year 2026/27 and Sh2.65 billion in each of the following two years.

The contrasting budget paths paint the picture of a government recalibrating its approach to economic empowerment for young people and informal sector workers.

When the Hustler Fund was launched, the programme was designed around simplicity and speed. Borrowers have access to unsecured mobile loans at an annualised interest rate of eight percent repayable within 14 days. Late repayment attracted a higher annualised rate of 9.5 percent.

The programme initially targeted low-income Kenyans who had historically struggled to secure loans from banks because of lack of collateral, formal employment or credit history.

Former Treasury Cabinet Secretary Njuguna Ndung’u defended the initiative in its early days as an intervention aimed at correcting structural failures within the financial system.

‘The Hustler Fund is an instrument to correct market failures at the bottom of the pyramid,’ Prof Ndung’u said at the time.

‘Most of the time we start financial products to address needs at the bottom of the pyramid, but what happens is that the product leaves and moves on to the next level, whereas the intention should be that people are the ones to move upwards not the product.’

The scheme expanded rapidly as millions of Kenyans turned to the mobile platform for quick credit to support household spending and small businesses. In December 2024, the government introduced a second-tier product known as Bridge Loan for borrowers with strong repayment records.

The upgraded facility increased borrowing limits by as much as 300 percent and extended repayment periods to 30 days while maintaining the same pricing structure. By March 2026, the State Department for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises told Parliament that the fund had disbursed Sh83 billion in loans, of which Sh71 billion had been repaid.

The department was simultaneously seeking Sh300 million from lawmakers to facilitate recovery efforts targeting roughly Sh12.5 billion in defaults. The figures reveal both the popularity of the programme and the mounting challenges associated with sustaining a large-scale State-backed lending scheme targeting low-income borrowers.

In the financial year ended June 2025 alone, Kenyans borrowed Sh17.9 billion from the fund, highlighting the continued demand for accessible short-term credit among millions outside conventional banking. The fund has also faced growing scrutiny from auditors over governance weaknesses and loan management controls.

Auditor-General Nancy Gathungu, in her report for the financial year ending June 2025, disclosed that 104,631 loans worth Sh116.5 million had been issued to customers whose national identity card numbers were missing from the customer database.

‘In the circumstances, the issuance of loans to customers without established loan limits points to inadequate credit assessment controls and increases the risk of lending to unqualified or unverified customers,’ Ms Gathungu said.

Her audit also questioned the closure of 386,735 loan accounts linked to Safaricom SIM cards before borrowers fully repaid outstanding balances.

‘The outstanding principal on these accounts amounted to Sh377,490,360, which should have been recovered before account closure. Management did not provide any evidence to justify or support the closure of these accounts.’

The findings added to concerns that the rapid expansion of the programme may have outpaced internal controls and recovery mechanisms.

The government, however, maintains the programme has achieved significant milestones in expanding financial inclusion.

During his State of the Nation address in November 2025, Dr Ruto described the Hustler Fund as the largest financial inclusion programme since independence.

‘The Financial Inclusion Fund, the Hustler Fund, now stands as the largest financial inclusion programme since independence, extending over Sh80 billion to millions of Kenyans,’ the President told Parliament.

‘Seven million once-blacklisted Kenyans have since repaired their credit. Three million small business owners previously locked out of formal finance are now banked. And two million Kenyans are now frequent borrowers.’

He added that 800,000 entrepreneurs were already accessing loans of up to Sh150,000 through the Bridge Facility without collateral.

But even as the President defended the programme, he also hinted at the government’s changing priorities.

‘Credit alone is not enough,’ Dr Ruto told lawmakers as he unveiled NYOTA as the administration’s next major youth empowerment platform.

The latest Treasury estimates suggest that while the Hustler Fund may continue operating as a revolving credit scheme, the centre of gravity in the government’s economic empowerment agenda is steadily shifting toward NYOTA and broader employment-focused interventions.

Africa’s pay-TV industry is at a crossroads. Traditional growth engines including household subscriptions, linear programming, and fixed monthly bundles are under pressure from shifting consumer behaviour, economic realities, and rapid digital adoption. Yet disruption is not decline; it is reinvention.

While attending the inaugural StreamTV Europe 2026 in Lisbon from April 13 to 15, I observed global media executives grappling with these challenges.

A dominant theme was the fragmentation of the media ecosystem, with telcos increasingly positioning themselves as super-aggregators to simplify user experience and counter piracy; driven less by price and more by consumer demand for convenience.

What stood out to me is that this reinvention is not theoretical. It is already happening-at scale-in Kenya.

Kenya is no longer simply participating in Africa’s pay-TV evolution; it is helping define it.

The country has emerged as one of the continent’s most dynamic innovation hubs for the live testbed sector where new operating models, technologies, and audience strategies are being validated in real time.

This leadership stems from a rare convergence: robust infrastructure, youthful demographics, progressive regulation, and deep digital adoption. Mobile penetration exceeds 130 percent, broadband access continues to expand, and over 96 percent of adults use mobile money. Kenya is, effectively, one of the most digitally integrated consumer markets globally.

For pay-TV operators, this matters enormously.

As highlighted at StreamTV Europe, the critical challenge is closing the ‘simplicity gap’ in an increasingly fragmented content landscape.

Kenyan consumers are already setting this standard. They expect seamless, intuitive experiences, transacting digitally, consuming content across multiple devices, and shifting fluidly between live TV, streaming platforms, and mobile-first formats.

Today, over 60 percent of internet users in Kenya watch video on their mobile phones, signalilng a decisive shift away from single-screen viewing.

This creates a powerful advantage: innovation cycles that are faster, and immediate feedback loops.

Flexible access models, mobile-led consumption, data-driven discovery, and hybrid subscription structures are not just concepts-they are being tested and refined in Kenya before scaling to other markets.

Crucially, the industry is moving away from passive, one-size-fits-all broadcasting toward personalised, on-demand experiences. Audiences now expect relevance, choice, and control.

Kenya reflects this shift vividly. Consumers engage actively; through viewing behaviour, social interaction, and churn patterns thus creating real-time data signals.

For operators, this enables continuous optimisation of content and pricing strategies, moving from instinct-led decisions to data-led execution.

Technology is not replacing storytelling; it is amplifying it. Platforms that deliver the right content to the right audience at the right moment will define the next phase of growth. Personalisation is no longer a differentiator. It is the baseline.

Demographics reinforce this momentum. With over 70 percent of the population under 35, Kenya has one of the youngest media markets globally. This generation values authenticity, local relevance, and seamless access.

Regulation, often perceived as a constraint, has been a key enabler. Kenya’s relatively mature media and ICT frameworks provide stability in a rapidly evolving landscape.

The proposed 2026 Copyright and Related Rights Bill aims to modernise intellectual property protection, strengthen creator rights, and tighten enforcement against digital piracy while directly addressing concerns echoed by global industry players.

This is reinforced by recognition from the International Telecommunication Union, which recently ranked Kenya among Africa’s leading countries in ICT regulation. Such credibility enhances investor confidence and supports innovation.

The conclusion is clear: the future of African pay-TV will not be defined by a single platform or model. It will be shaped by markets that move faster, listen better, and balance innovation with affordability and trust.

Kenya has enacted a Technopolis Act, allowing counties to build their own Konza-style smart cities to create new hubs for startups, research institutions, and foreign investors beyond the capital, Nairobi.

The law establishes a new Technopolis Development Authority (TDA), replacing the Konza Technopolis Development Authority (KoTDA), and gives counties legal backing to develop gazetted technology zones focused on innovation, research, and tech-driven business.

It is Kenya’s most ambitious attempt yet to decentralise the ‘Silicon Savannah’, the popular moniker for the country’s tech ecosystem centred around Nairobi, while positioning counties as potential magnets for venture capital, manufacturing, cloud infrastructure, and artificial intelligence (AI) investments.

Technopolises are typically planned urban areas or special economic zones concentrated with technology companies, research institutions, and innovation hubs.

They are designed to foster research, commercialisation, and tech development. Examples include America’s Silicon Valley, China’s Zhongguancun, and France’s Sophia Antipolis. Governments globally are increasingly using tech cities to attract foreign direct investment (FDI), jobs, and research funding.

Under Kenya’s new law, the ICT Cabinet Secretary can declare new technopolises across counties, creating opportunities for regional specialisation in areas such as agri-tech, renewable energy, logistics, health-tech, and financial technology (fintech).

Incentives boost

The law allows early-stage startups to receive exemptions from licensing requirements, potentially easing one of the biggest challenges among founders – high compliance costs before achieving scale.

It also allows the authority to grant exemptions from fees, levies, and charges, while government-backed incentives could include tax holidays, reduced customs duties, and subsidised infrastructure access.

For technology startups, which often face high upfront costs in hardware, cloud services, and specialised talent, the incentives could improve survival rates in the critical early years. Dedicated small-enterprise support centres will also be established within technopolises to provide mentorship, technical support, and business development services.

Analysts say the institutional support could help address the so-called ‘valley of death’ period, where many startups fail due to weak operational structures, limited financing, and a lack of market access.

Strong collaboration

The clustering of startups within innovation hubs, science parks, and research institutions is also seen to create stronger collaboration among entrepreneurs, universities, investors, and established firms.

For foreign investors, the law provides multiple new entry points into Kenya outside Nairobi. Kenya is one of Africa’s top venture capital destinations by deal value and volume, and Nairobi is home to the majority of these businesses.

By allowing counties to establish technopolises based on local economic strengths, analysts say investors could target specialised sectors in different regions – from logistics and maritime technology at the Coast to agritech in food-producing counties and renewable energy innovation in northern Kenya.

The Act also seeks to attract investment into cloud computing facilities, AI systems, and data centres by mandating the hosting of government infrastructure powered by these emerging technologies. It could create opportunities for global cloud providers and AI companies looking for regional expansion bases in East Africa.

Foreign investors are also expected to benefit from tax incentives and streamlined approvals through a proposed ‘one-stop-shop’ system aimed at reducing bureaucratic delays often associated with setting up businesses in Kenya.

Currently, Konza Technopolis remains Kenya’s only operational technopolis and serves as the blueprint for the county-based smart city model.

Started in 2009 during former President Mwai Kibaki’s administration, the 5,000-acre development along Mombasa Road was envisioned as a futuristic science city driving Kenya’s transition into a knowledge economy.

Construction is still ongoing, albeit slowly, and the government has invested more than Sh90 billion in Konza, focusing on foundational infrastructure, flagship buildings, digital hubs, and a tier-3 data centre serving more than 170 public and private clients.

Some of the companies operating in the technopolis include Kenya’s largest telco, Safaricom, and the Chinese tech giant Huawei.

Still, some analysts say a strong centralisation of authority in Nairobi could limit county governments’ autonomy in managing local technopolises, potentially undermining the decentralisation agenda.

Others caution that incentives could disproportionately favour large multinational investors at the expense of local entrepreneurs and small businesses if safeguards are not put in place.

There are concerns that the promised efficiency gains could still be slowed by bureaucratic approvals and regulatory bottlenecks, particularly if multiple government agencies retain overlapping oversight roles.

Over the next few weeks, I want to explore the creation of dynasties. No, not the ‘Hustler-turned-tenderpreneur-turned-Runda rich but legacy poor’ types of dynasties.

I want to explore the real family dynasty that emerges when hard-working individuals put their backs into it, start businesses that have both legitimate employees and customers and which businesses generate dividends that form the backbone of wealth, passed on from generation to generation.

In transitioning that wealth successfully, the founder’s family gains prominence for their role in business and, quite often, philanthropy. Philanthropy in this case means meaningfully helping societies rather than handing out crumpled banknotes on the sidelines of political rallies.

A key cog in the success of wealth transition is the role of the family office. Family offices are specialised entities designed to manage, preserve and grow the wealth of ultra high net worth families, often emerging from successful family businesses.

They serve as the backbone of dynastic wealth management, ensuring that fortunes built over generations are not only sustained but strategically deployed. Their evolution reflects centuries of financial innovation, from Renaissance banking dynasties to today’s tech billionaires.

The concept of the family office dates back to the Medici family, which was a powerful banking dynasty that rose to prominence in Renaissance Florence, Italy, starting in the early 15th century.

They built one of Europe’s largest banks, which helped them gain immense wealth and political influence. The Medicis became de facto rulers of Florence, patrons of the arts and key figures in European politics, producing several popes and monarchs. However, their original line ended in the 18th century, and their vast wealth and power gradually faded.

Today, while the Medici family no longer holds the immense wealth or influence they once had, their legacy lives on through their contributions to art, culture, and history, especially in Florence. This model of centralised wealth management laid the foundation for future family offices.

In the 18th and 19th centuries, the Rothschild family expanded the idea globally, creating one of the first cross border family offices. Their ability to coordinate investments across Europe made them a financial powerhouse.

Originally from Frankfurt, Germany, the family’s founder, Mayer Rothschild (1710-1812), originally started as a financial advisor to various European princes, eventually founding a banking business in Frankfurt. He had five sons, each of whom established banking houses in major European cities: Frankfurt, London, Paris, Vienna, and Naples. The sons helped create a banking network that facilitated massive financial transactions across Europe.

This network played a significant role in funding various national endeavours, including wars and infrastructure projects. Today, the Rothschild family is involved in diversified activities, including investment banking, asset management, and more, with businesses spanning industries such as agriculture, wine, and finance and estimated to run into the billions of dollars.

The modern family office structure emerged in the United States (US) in 1882, when John D. Rockefeller established an office to manage his fortune. This institution became the template for wealth preservation, philanthropy, and investment diversification. John D. Rockefeller was born in Richford, New York, in 1839.

At age 16, he began working as a bookkeeper in Cleveland, Ohio, developing meticulous financial habits. In 1863, he entered the oil business with partners, building a refinery in Cleveland. By 1870, he co-founded Standard Oil with his brother William and several associates, capitalising on the oil boom.

Through aggressive acquisitions, favourable railroad deals and vertical integration, Standard Oil controlled about 90 percent of US refineries and pipelines. The Standard Oil Trust (1882) consolidated Rockefeller’s empire, creating one of the first major US business trusts.

By the early 20th century, Rockefeller had amassed unprecedented wealth, becoming the world’s first billionaire in 1916. His fortune and philanthropy (funding universities, medical research, and public health) cemented the family’s influence. The Rockefellers transitioned from industrialists to philanthropists and political leaders, ensuring their legacy across multiple fields.

A critical distinction in the family office model is the separation between the underlying businesses that generate wealth and the management of dividends and investment returns. The family business, whether it is Walmart, Microsoft, or Amazon, focuses on operations, growth and profitability.

The family office, by contrast, manages the dividends, distributions and capital generated by those businesses. This separation ensures that wealth management decisions are not conflated with business operations, allowing for diversification, risk management and long term planning independent of the family enterprise’s performance.

For example, the Walton family continues to oversee Walmart through corporate governance, but their family office manages the dividends, investing in philanthropy, real estate and other ventures.

Similarly, Bill Gates and Jeff Bezos use their family offices to channel wealth from their companies into diversified investments and social initiatives.

Next week, we’ll take a deeper dive into how these family offices are structured to ensure that wealth transition across generations endures.

India’s billionaire Gautam Adani has settled its case with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) as he continues to snub Kenya talks, over compensation after the verbal cancellation of a multi-billion shilling deal to build electricity transmission lines and substations.

US enforcement agencies plan to end actions against Mr Adani and his business conglomerate, following accusation of the tycoon’s involvement in a $265 million bribery scheme.

President William Ruto, in November 2024, ordered the cancellation of a 30-year, Sh96 billion public-private partnership deal that an Adani Group firm signed with the energy ministry to construct power transmission lines citing the US indictment.

Adani and his nephew Sagar Adani paid $18 million in a settlement with the SEC without admitting or denying the allegations-which formed the basis of Kenya’s termination.

But as the billionaire battled to clear his longstanding US legal problems on back of his close relationship with President Donald Trump’s, he remained muted and detached in Kenya’s push to settle the termination of the Sh96 billion deal.

Multiple lawyers familiar with the Adani deals in Kenya reckon that the Indian conglomerate was little engaged for an amicable resolution to the Adani contract and the establishment of compensation for one of the world’s richest individuals.

‘They have never accepted or rejected the cancellation made during the presidential state of the nation address,’ said a top lawyer who advised on the Adani deals and sought anonymity.

‘They have remained reticence on the Kenyan matter. They believe there was no legal basis for cancellation.’

The Public-Private Partnership (PPP) unit at Treasury last year indicated that talks were underway for amicable resolution to the Adani contract. This came as it emerged that Kenya had not issued a formal termination notice to the Adani Group.

The termination was hinged on Section 62 of the PPA Act, with Kenya citing material governance issues and offenses under the Anti-Corruption and Economic Crimes Act.

Adani had been charged by US prosecutors on November 20, 2024 over an alleged years-long scheme to bribe Indian officials in exchange for favourable terms on solar power contracts that were projected to bring in more than $2bn in profit.

US federal prosecutors said more than $250mn in bribes were ‘offered and promised’ between 2020 and 2024 to people in the Indian government as part of the scheme, which was allegedly concealed from the US banks and investors from which they raised billions of dollars.

The day after the US indictment, President Ruto on November 21, cancelled the 30-year public-private partnership deal that an Adani Group firm signed with the energy ministry in October, 2024 to construct power transmission lines.

President Ruto attributing the cancellation to “new information provided by investigative agencies and partner nations”.

At the time of cancellation, the Adani deals in Kenya had drawn sharp criticism from many politicians and members of the public over concerns about a lack of transparency and value for money.

‘In November 2024, the indictment of the Adani principles was live and conviction was a real prospect,’ said another who requested not to be named. ‘With the charges, now reportedly being dropped, that foundation has softened.’

The US Justice Department is close to dropping criminal fraud charges against Mr Adani.

Adani on Thursday resolved a related civil fraud lawsuit brought by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) over an alleged scheme to bribe Indian government officials, subject to court approval.

Kenya favoured the less costly route of mutual separation over termination.

Termination is an action initiated by a single party, and in this case, will see Kenya pay Adani Group at least Sh5 billion based on lawyers’ estimates and the size of the deal.

Mutual separation is a negotiated agreement ending the agreement on the power deals inked in October, 2024, which will see Kenya offer a small payout to cover costs that Adani used in securing the contract.

Some lawyers argued that termination under Section 62 of the PPP Act does not provide for compensation.

The PPP directorate reckoned last year that it was not possible to talk about termination costs.

‘Termination process is underway, thus the termination costs are yet to be determined,’ the PPP unit said in a review of the public-private partnership deals as at June.

Under the PPP deal, Adani inked a deal to construct two power transmission lines and two substations.

This included a 206km 400kV Gilgil-Thika-Malaa-Konza power transmission line that will boost power supply around Nairobi. The line was expected to be completed in 2027.

It was also set to build the 70km 132kV Menengai-Olkalou-Rumuruti transmission line that will extend high voltage to Olkalou, providing an alternative evacuation path for the Menengai geothermal complex. The line was slated for completion in 2028.

Adani was also building two substations– the 132kV Thurdiburo substation and the 400/220/132kV substation at Rongai-both set to be built by 2028.

But the election of President Trump saw the US soften its stance in pursuit of Mr Adani.

Representatives for Adani have since met officials from Trump’s administration to seek dismissal of criminal charges in an overseas bribery probe, with a resolution possible.

President Trump also paused prosecutions under the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA), further weakening Adani’s indictment.

The FCPA was central in the pursuit of the Adani’s and President Trump reckons the law is a disadvantage to American businesses competing globally.

India’s conglomerate was expected to generate outsized profits for 30 years before handing over the lines to the Kenyan government.

It was to spend Sh96 billion on capital expenditure, and expected to generate revenues of Sh634 billion in the 30 years or Sh21.2 billion annually.

The conglomerate was going to recoup its investments through a new charge in households’ monthly electricity bills technically called a wheeling charge.

The revenues excluded other expenses like debt, salaries and maintenance costs.

Kenya Electricity Transmission Company Limited (Ketraco) has dropped mandatory tax, debt and integrity clearance requirements in a revised advertisement for its chief executive officer position, weeks after an earlier recruitment notice was withdrawn following a legal threat.

The new advert removes requirements for clearance certificates from the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA), the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC), the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI), the Higher Education Loans Board (Helb) and Credit Reference Bureaus (CRBs).

The changes come after the State-owned transmission firm cancelled its earlier advert following a protest letter warning of legal action over what lawyers described as unlawful alteration of statutory qualifications for State corporation bosses.

A comparison of the two notices shows that Ketraco has significantly revised the eligibility criteria for candidates seeking to replace former managing director John Mativo. The fresh advert focuses on academic qualifications, senior management experience and constitutional integrity requirements under Chapter Six.

The earlier advertisement had drawn criticism from Nairobi-based law firm KN Ndiang’ui and Co Advocates, which argued that the board had introduced requirements not provided for in law. In a letter dated April 20, 2026, the lawyers warned that State corporations cannot ‘alter or dilute’ statutory appointment conditions.

They also threatened court action against board members personally if the process was not corrected. Ketraco later withdrew the advert without explanation, only saying that further communication would follow through official channels.

The revised notice now appears aligned with the Government-Owned Enterprises Act, 2025, which standardises recruitment criteria for chief executives in State firms.

Under the law, applicants must hold a degree from a recognised university, have at least 10 years’ relevant experience, including five years in senior management, and meet Chapter Six integrity requirements.

The recruitment comes amid an extended leadership vacuum at Ketraco following the exit of John Mativo nearly eight months ago. His departure was not officially explained. He had succeeded Fernandes Barasa, who left to pursue politics and was later elected Kakamega Governor in 2022.

The company is also increasingly turning to public-private partnerships to fund major transmission projects as pressure on public finances grows.

Kenya is not short of ambition. From infrastructure expansion to digital transformation, from universal healthcare to affordable housing, the country’s policy landscape is rich with promise.

Yet, time and again, the gap between policy and impact remains stubbornly wide. Projects stall, costs escalate, and intended benefits fail to reach citizens. The issue is not vision, it is execution.

Recent trends in public spending underscore the stakes. Development expenditure has consistently accounted for roughly a third of the national budget. This is a significant commitment of public resources.

However, across developing economies, nearly 40 percent of public sector projects either face delays, exceed budgets, or fall short of their objectives.

Kenya is not immune to these challenges. The consequences are tangible: incomplete roads, underutilised facilities, and diminished public trust. At the heart of this problem lies project management, a structural weakness that is often overlooked.

For decades, Kenya’s development discourse has prioritised policy design. While this is necessary, it is no longer sufficient.

The modern public sector requires a shift in mindset, from policy-first to delivery-focused governance. This means embedding structured project management practices at every stage, from planning and budgeting to implementation and evaluation.

Evidence strongly supports this approach. Organisations that adopt standardised project management frameworks waste significantly less money than those that do not. The difference is not marginal, but transformative. Efficient project governance improves accountability, enhances transparency, and ensures that resources are directed toward measurable outcomes.

This is particularly critical as Kenya continues to pursue long-term strategies such as Kenya Vision 2030 and its successor plans. These frameworks are designed to elevate the country to middle-income status, but their success hinges not on policy articulation, but on disciplined execution.

The challenge, therefore, is twofold. First, there is a capacity gap. Many public sector institutions still lack adequately trained project management professionals.

While technical expertise in specific sectors such as engineering, health, and education is strong, the ability to manage complex, multi-stakeholder projects remains uneven. This often leads to fragmented implementation, weak coordination, and reactive decision-making.

Second, there is an institutional gap.

Project management is not yet fully integrated into the governance architecture of many public agencies. In some cases, it is treated as an administrative function rather than a strategic capability. This limits its effectiveness and reduces its influence on decision-making at the highest levels.

Addressing these gaps requires deliberate action. Capacity building must become a priority. This includes not only training public officials in globally recognised project management methodologies, but also fostering a culture of continuous learning and professionalisation.

The growing global demand for project management roles, projected to rise sharply in the coming years, signals an opportunity for Kenya to build a workforce that is not only competent, but competitive.

Equally important is institutional reform. Public agencies need to adopt standardised frameworks for project governance, risk management, and performance measurement. This should be complemented by clear accountability structures and robust monitoring systems.

Digital tools can play a key role here, enabling real-time tracking of project progress and facilitating data-driven decision-making.

Collaboration is another critical piece of the puzzle. Effective project delivery in the public sector often involves multiple actors, such as government ministries, county governments, development partners, and private sector players.

Without coordinated effort, even well-designed projects can falter. Structured platforms for knowledge sharing and cross-sector engagement are essential to align priorities and streamline implementation.

Ultimately, improving project delivery is not just a technical issue. It is a governance imperative. Citizens experience outcomes, not policy. A road either exists or it does not. A hospital either functions or it does not. The credibility of public institutions depends on their ability to deliver tangible results.

Kenya stands at a pivotal moment. With increasing investment in development and growing complexity in public projects, the cost of poor execution is rising. But so too is the opportunity. By strengthening project management practices, the country can unlock greater value from its investments, accelerate progress toward national goals, and restore confidence in public service delivery.

The conversation must now move beyond what we plan to do, to how we deliver it. Because in the end, development is not measured by intentions, but by impact.

The Supreme Court has struck down a law subjecting pension schemes sponsored by public entities and State corporations to the strict public procurement system, ruling that workers’ retirement savings are private trust funds and not public money despite being linked to State employers.

In a landmark ruling expected to reshape governance, investment operations and oversight across the country’s retirement benefits sector, the court held that pension schemes handling funds from government workers are not public entities subject to procurement laws.

The divided five-judge bench led by Chief Justice Martha Koome ruled that pension funds linked to public entities are not public money subject to the Public Procurement and Asset Disposal Act (PPADA).

The decision overturns earlier rulings by the High Court and Court of Appeal, which had upheld Section 2(o) of the PPADA and classified pension schemes of public institutions as public entities required to comply with State procurement procedures.

According to the court, pension savings cease being public funds once contributions are remitted into retirement schemes established as irrevocable trusts under the Retirement Benefits Act.

‘A pension fund sponsored by a public entity was not contemplated in the enactment of Article 227 of the Constitution to be an entity intended to undertake public procurement,’ the majority ruled.

The court declared Section 2(o) of the PPADA unconstitutional to the extent that it subjected pension funds to public procurement systems. It further held that pension schemes are private trusts and not State bodies performing public functions.

The ruling hands a major victory to the Association of Retirement Benefits Schemes, which argued that procurement rules increased administrative costs, slowed investment decisions and interfered with employees’ savings.

Loan disbursements under affirmative action funds started the Kibaki and Uhuru Kenyatta era have dropped as President William Ruto’s digitally driven lending programmes expand their reach among youth and small traders.

Official disclosures show both the Uwezo Fund and the Women Enterprise Fund (WEF) missed lending targets by wide margins in the financial year ended June 2025, signalling the declining role of legacy State-backed credit schemes.

Disbursements under the Uwezo Fund fell to Sh431.4 million, below the Sh600 million target and down from Sh543.2 million in 2023/24.

The State Department for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprise Development blamed the decline on operational bottlenecks at constituency level.

‘The target for FY 2024/25 was not achieved as a result of 80 constituencies being dormant, and another 20 not having committees,’ the department said in budget proposals for the year starting July 2026.

The Uwezo Fund was established in 2013 under former President Uhuru Kenyatta to provide interest-free loans to women, youth and persons with disabilities through constituency structures.

The Women Enterprise Fund, launched in 2007 during former President Mwai Kibaki’s administration, also posted one of its weakest lending years.

WEF disbursed Sh457 million against a target of Sh2.7 billion in 2024/25, down from Sh941 million in 2023/24 and Sh1.72 billion in 2022/23.

The State Department for Gender and Affirmative Action linked the decline to suspension of WEF’s digital lending model following rising defaults and weak repayments.

Only 12,538 women entrepreneurs received funding during the year, far below the target of 200,000 beneficiaries.

In contrast, the Financial Inclusion Fund, popularly known as the Hustler Fund, has rapidly expanded to become the centrepiece of President Ruto’s bottom-up economic model.

Read: Kibaki, Uhuru-era funds falter as Hustler, Nyota rise

The fund had disbursed more than Sh72 billion to about 26 million Kenyans by June 2025, up from Sh52 billion in 2023/24 and Sh35 billion in 2022/23.

Alongside the Hustler Fund, the government has also rolled out the National Youth Opportunities Towards Advancement (Nyota) project targeting unemployed youth.

Under the programme’s first phase, each beneficiary aged between 18 and 19 receives Sh25,000, with Sh22,000 sent directly to mobile wallets for business activities while Sh3,000 is deposited into a ‘Haba na Haba’ savings account managed by the National Social Security Fund.