Category: Business Daily

A Kenya Power supplier has lost a Sh317 million tax dispute after a tribunal upheld the taxman’s assessment over unsupported input-tax claims. This brings renewed attention to the company behind a Sh2.9 billion Kenya Power smart metre contract that drew a lot of public debate and scrutiny about three years ago.

The Tax Appeals Tribunal dismissed Harley Berry Limited’s appeal following a finding that it failed to provide documents supporting its claim that the tax assessment was wrong.

‘The appellant failed to file documents to demonstrate that the respondent (Commissioner of Domestic Taxes) erred in confirming the assessment,” the Tribunal said.

Harley Berry is also at the centre of a separate public procurement controversy involving Kenya Power’s Sh2.9 billion smart-metre supply contract awarded in 2023 through the State Department for Public Works.

The company came to public attention after being issued with the contract for 320,800 smart metres, a move that even attracted Parliamentary scrutiny with the Parliament’s Energy Committee seeking the tender evaluation committee minutes, the Principal Secretary’s authorisation and a procurement opinion concerning the award. The parliamentary and Senate inquiries did not establish any corruption or irregularity against Harley Berry in the smart-meter tender.

However, the two matters are separate. The tax case concerned VAT business records and whether input tax claims were properly supported, while the Parliamentary procurement inquiry concerns how the company obtained the meter contract.

The tax dispute began in March 2025 after the Commissioner of Domestic Taxes issued an additional assessment of Sh317.9 million for VAT covering 2022 to 2024.

Harley Berry objected, but KRA confirmed the assessment. The company then appealed, arguing it needed more time to retrieve supporting documents. The company argued that it had not been given enough time to retrieve manual records from its archives and obtain documents from suppliers.

It also said some input VAT could be traced through the iTax and eTIMS systems and should therefore have been allowed.

KRA rejected the argument, saying Harley Berry had filed nil returns from January to July 2022 despite having withholding-VAT credits.

The authority said the company later filed the pending returns, but failed to declare sales linked to withholding VAT certificates.

KRA also said it questioned input VAT claimed from suppliers who were nil filers, non-filers or unregistered for VAT when Harley Berry made the claims.

The authority singled out Coolextreme International Limited and Ndume Chainlinks Limited, saying Harley Berry claimed more input VAT than the suppliers’ declared sales.

KRA further said the company failed to provide supporting documents despite being asked for invoices, supplier confirmations and bank statements. Harley Berry maintained that it had supplied supporting material but needed more time to retrieve manual records.

The Tribunal ruled that the company had not produced sufficient evidence to overturn the assessment.

‘The appellant provided none of the documents needed to support its VAT claims,’ the Tribunal said.

It noted that Harley Berry had filed its notice of objection and KRA’s objection decision, but no documents demonstrating that the disputed input tax was claimable.

‘The highlighted documents cannot demonstrate that input tax was claimable, nor do they demonstrate that the respondent erred in confirming the assessment,’ the Tribunal said.

It added that Harley Berry had been given sufficient time to provide documents showing that the disputed inputs related to taxable supplies. The company failed to discharge its burden of proof.

The Tribunal consequently dismissed the appeal and upheld KRA’s July 25, 2025 objection decision.

The separate Kenya Power smart meter matter attracted Parliamentary inquiry following concerns raised by the Public Procurement Regulatory Authority over alleged irregularities in the award of the Sh2.9 billion smart-meter tender.

A June 2026 Senate report said the framework agreement was implemented through call-off orders, with prices of Sh9,150 for single-phase meters and Sh15,890 for three-phase meters. It said more than 320,000 meters were supplied between October 2023 and February 2024.

The Senate said its inquiry examined the procurement process, compliance with procurement law, local manufacture of smart meters and reforms to Kenya Power’s procurement system.

Kenya Power told senators that it used a Supplies Branch framework contract after facing an acute metre shortage and said Harley Berry had been introduced as a supplier with ready stock.

A Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) tax audit is one of those events that most businesses would rather not receive notice of. Yet an audit does not necessarily mean that a taxpayer has done something wrong.

KRA is legally empowered to review taxpayers’ affairs to establish whether the correct taxes have been declared and paid. The outcome may be that the taxpayer is found compliant, or it may result in an additional assessment where KRA identifies a tax shortfall.

KRA may undertake returns reviews, comprehensive audits or investigations covering taxes such as income tax, VAT, PAYE, withholding tax, excise duty and customs duty.

A KRA tax audit is essentially an examination of a taxpayer’s financial and tax affairs to determine whether the taxpayer has complied with its obligations under the applicable tax laws. The process may involve reviewing tax returns, accounting records, invoices, bank information, contracts, payroll records and other documents relevant to determining the taxpayer’s liability.

The Tax Procedures Act, 2015 (TPA) gives the Commissioner broad powers to administer tax laws and obtain information relevant to determining a taxpayer’s liability. Importantly, the TPA defines a ‘document’ broadly to include books of account, records, bank statements, receipts, invoices, vouchers, contracts, agreements, tax returns, tax invoices and electronic data.

There is no general rule requiring KRA to audit every taxpayer after a particular number of years. In practice, taxpayers may be selected for compliance checks, returns reviews, audits or investigations depending on KRA’s compliance mandate and risk assessment.

This means that a taxpayer should not assume that being audited once means it will not be audited again, or that not having been audited for several years means the business is unlikely to be selected. Businesses should instead maintain their tax records on an ongoing basis.

The TPA generally requires taxpayers to retain tax documents for five years from the end of the relevant reporting period, subject to statutory exceptions, including where the documents relate to an amended assessment or ongoing proceedings. Further, the Commissioner may assess outside the ordinary five-year period in cases involving gross or wilful neglect, evasion or fraud.

The best time to prepare for a KRA audit is before the audit notice arrives. A taxpayer should first confirm that its tax registrations accurately reflect the obligations applicable to the business. This includes reviewing the taxpayer’s PIN, VAT registration and other relevant tax obligations.

The taxpayer should then conduct an internal review of its tax returns and payments. Returns should be reconciled against the underlying accounting records, while payments should be matched against the relevant tax liabilities and payment receipts. Any outstanding balances, unexplained differences or inconsistencies should be identified early.

Businesses should also ensure that their tax invoices are properly maintained and compliant. This is particularly important in relation to VAT and income tax and the increasing integration of electronic invoicing requirements.

KRA currently requires applicable taxpayers to comply with eTIMS/TIMS requirements, and from the 2026 year of income, KRA has stated that declared business income and expenses must be supported by valid eTIMs invoices.

Other records that deserve particular attention include contracts, bank statements and the general ledger. These records should tell a consistent story. Where amounts declared in tax returns cannot be reconciled with the general ledger or bank transactions, the discrepancy may attract further questions from KRA.

Payroll should also be reviewed carefully, particularly PAYE, employee benefits, allowances and other employment-related payments.

Similarly, withholding tax records should be reconciled against invoices, payment schedules, certificates and the relevant returns.

For VAT, businesses should reconcile sales, purchases, output VAT, input VAT, tax invoices and VAT returns. Finally, related-party transactions deserve special attention because transactions involving connected persons may raise questions relating to transfer pricing, deductibility, withholding tax and the arm’s-length principle.

During the Audit: control the process

Once an audit begins, businesses should establish a clear communication protocol. Ideally, one person or a designated team member should coordinate communication with KRA. This avoids contradictory responses and ensures that every request is properly recorded and addressed.

Document production should also be controlled. A taxpayer should understand precisely what KRA has requested before producing documents. Requests should be logged, assigned to responsible persons and tracked until fully responded to.

The objective is not to withhold relevant information from KRA, but to ensure that the information provided is accurate, complete and responsive to the request. Every submission should preferably be accompanied by an evidence trail showing what was provided, when it was provided and to whom.

Legal advice is particularly important where an audit involves potentially contentious issues. Taxpayers should also consider whether particular communications or documents attract legal professional privilege. Privilege should not, however, be asserted casually. The nature of the communication and the capacity in which the legal practitioner was acting should be considered carefully.

Before any substantive response is sent to KRA, management should undertake a response review. A seemingly harmless explanation may have wider tax consequences if it inadvertently contradicts information previously submitted or creates an admission that was not intended.

After the Audit: do not ignore the findings

Completion of the audit does not necessarily mean the matter is over. KRA may communicate its findings which the taxpayer is required to respond to. In the event that the KRA is not satisfied with the findings issued, KRA may consider there is additional tax payable and thus issue a tax demand/ assessment.

The taxpayer should carefully review the basis of the assessment rather than simply accepting or rejecting it. The taxpayer should establish which transactions are disputed, the statutory basis relied upon by KRA, the computation of the additional tax, penalties and interest, and whether the evidence supports the assessment.

Where the taxpayer disagrees with a tax decision, the Tax Procedures Act requires the taxpayer to first lodge an objection with the Commissioner. Section 51 of the Tax Procedures Act provides for an objection within 30 days of notification of the tax decision, and the objection must set out the grounds of objection and the amendments required.

This stage should be approached seriously because an objection is not merely a letter stating that the taxpayer disagrees with KRA. It should be properly supported by the relevant facts/ grounds of objection, documents and legal arguments.

Where appropriate, the taxpayer and KRA may explore settlement or alternative resolution of the disputed issues. However, settlement should be considered carefully, particularly where the taxpayer has strong evidence and legal grounds to challenge the assessment.

If the dispute remains unresolved at the objection stage, the taxpayer may proceed to the Tax Appeals Tribunal in accordance with the Tax Procedures Act and the Tax Appeals Tribunal Act.

An appeal relating to an assessment generally requires the taxpayer to have paid the undisputed tax or entered into an arrangement with the Commissioner regarding payment of the undisputed amount. The statutory timelines are strict; recent Tribunal decisions continue to emphasize the importance of filing an appeal within the prescribed period. In the event that the dispute is not resolved at the Tribunal, other avenues for resolution include the High Court, Court of Appeal and the Supreme Court in exceptional circumstances.

A KRA audit should not be treated as a crisis that begins when the first audit letter arrives. It is a process for which businesses should prepare continuously.

The strongest position for a taxpayer is one where its registrations, returns, payments, invoices, contracts, bank records, ledgers, payroll, withholding tax, VAT and related-party transactions can all be reconciled and supported by contemporaneous evidence.

More importantly, taxpayers should remember that an audit is not simply an accounting exercise. It is a legal and evidentiary process.

How documents are produced, how explanations are framed, how requests are managed and how an assessment is challenged can ultimately determine whether a tax dispute is resolved efficiently or progresses into lengthy litigation.

Good tax compliance is therefore not merely about paying tax. It is also about keeping the evidence that proves why the tax reported and paid is correct.

The Energy committee of the Senate gave the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI), Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) and other State entities to complete the probe and determine the fate of the three within 60 days amid fears the investigations have gone cold.

The deadline lapses on October 19 in the wake of delays in prosecuting the officials who were arrested on April 2, 2026.

The three — former Principal Secretary for Petroleum Mohamed Liban, former Kenya Pipeline Company (KPC) managing director Joe Sang, and former Energy and Petroleum Regulatory Authority (Epra) director-general Daniel Kiptoo — were released on cash bail after spending days in the police cells.

The DCI, whose investigations took detectives to Saudi Arabia, has yet to make its findings public.

‘Any ongoing administrative, disciplinary or criminal proceedings involving the said officers be concluded expeditiously but without prejudice to due process,’ the Senate committee on Energy says in a report.

‘Accordingly, the committee recommends that the Ministry of Energy and Petroleum, the Public Service Commission, the State Corporations Advisory Committee, the boards of Epra and KPC together with all relevant investigative agencies, submit a consolidated status report to the Senate within 60 days of adoption of this report detailing the progress, findings and outcomes of all investigations and disciplinary proceedings relating to the affected officials.’

DCI did not respond to requests for comment by the time of going to press despite promises.

Manipulated data

The Ministry of Energy said in April that the manipulated data was used to justify the emergency importation of fuel, despite standing contracts with Saudi Aramco Trading Fujairah, Abu Dhabi’s ADNOC Global Trading Ltd, and Emirates National Oil Company Singapore Ltd., arguing that the firms were all meeting their contractual obligations.

It alleged that the emergency shipment was overpriced, of substandard quality, and procured at rates significantly higher than those agreed under existing deals.

The DCI were expected to prepare charges against the three under the Anti-Corruption and Economic Crimes Act.

One Petroleum was tapped alongside Oryx Energies to supply the emergency stock of petrol in the wake of a decision by Kenya’s top security organ, the National Security Council Committee (NSCC), to import the backup cargoes of petrol.

At the time, a vessel carrying 85,000 metric tonnes of petrol belonging to Gulf Energies got stuck at the port of Jebel Ali in the wake of Iran’s closure of the Strait of Hormuz.

One Petroleum and Oryx Energies were on March 25, 2026 awarded the contracts to ship in 81.3 million litres each of petrol, in deals that would later trigger a fall-out and the resignations and arrests of three top officials in the country’s energy sector.

Hass Petroleum and E3 Energy also placed tenders for the emergency stocks.

Kenya sought Uganda’s aid when it had 124.39 million litres of petrol for both local and transit markets as of March 19.

The stock was to last the country for 16 days, meaning that Kenya faced a stock-out of petrol from April 4, 2026.

Uganda keeps part of its fuel in KPC reserves and this is what Kenya was seeking to tap.

Fuel crisis

Kenya then tapped One Petroleum and Oryx Energies to import 60,000 tonnes of petrol each, outside the government-to-government (G-to-G) deal, to avert the impending fuel crisis.

Within three days of the award of the deal, One Petroleum secured a vessel owned by BP and headed to Angola. The shipment did not conform to Kenyan fuel standards. One Petroleum then sought waivers on the specifications from the government.

The State directed One Petroleum to recall the product, a move that industry executives said was not feasible given that it had already been discharged into KPC’s system and mingled with other products.

The cancellation came hours before Oryx’s cargo had arrived at the port of Mombasa, with the firm later protesting the government’s decision to revoke the imports.

One Petroleum protested the cancellation, saying that it incurred substantial commercial losses tied to demurrage, customs warehouse rent and inability to liquidate the product at its cost, besides reputational damage.

The firm said that it had not initiated litigation against the State for the botched deal.

‘To date, no penalties or formal liabilities have been imposed on the company by the government arising from the transaction. One Petroleum has not made any claim against the government,’ One Petroleum said in documents tabled in the Senate in June.

Traffic congestion, demand for affordable transport and the rise of online shopping are turning Kenya’s motorcycle taxi business into a great opportunity.

For years, ride-hailing firms built their businesses around cars, offering passengers a convenient option to taxis and public transport. As traffic congestion worsens and consumers demand faster and cheaper ways to move around, boda bodas have become a crucial part of digital mobility.

Motorcycles can weave through congested streets, reach destinations that are difficult for vehicles to access and cost less to operate.

Days ago, Rwandan ride-hailing firm Yego entered Kenya’s motorcycle ride-hailing market. The firm says it has onboarded more than 4,000 electric boda bodas to serve Nairobi and plans to expand to other major towns.

“We plan to launch our services in Eldoret, Kisumu, Mombasa and other towns in two months,” said Yego Mobility Kenya Director Alok Srivastava.

One of the company’s key features is combining the convenience of traditional boda boda services with the pricing of an app-based ride.

One can use the Yego passenger app, a pairing feature to connect with a rider or hail a Yego rider.

In the latter case, the rider activates the trip using a digital meter on the company’s app. The fare is then calculated, based on the distance and time, eliminating price negotiations. Riders will also pick up passengers without having to remain parked while waiting for an app request.

Bolt has in recent days expanded parcel delivery service in Mombasa to include motorcycles. The ‘Bolt Send’, was launched in Mombasa using cars early this year. The Estonian company says the addition of motorbikes targets movement of small parcels.

This comes in handy for retailers, restaurants, pharmacies, offices and online sellers who do not have in-house fleets to dispatch goods to customers.

Bolt also targets businesses moving documents between offices or individuals sending items across town.

“For a small business, a delayed delivery can mean a delayed sale, a missed customer or an unnecessary operating cost,” Bolt’s Senior General Manager for Rides in East Africa, Dimmy Kanyankole, said.

“We are making it easier to move smaller parcels using infrastructure that people already know and use.”

Customers can request “Bolt Send” through the Bolt app, get an upfront price estimate and track their parcels in real time.

The expansion comes as Kenya’s e-commerce market continues to develop, creating a parallel opportunity for companies providing the logistics that underpin online shopping.

The pandemic accelerated the shift towards online purchases, with retailers like Quickmart, Carrefour and Naivas investing in mobile apps.

Online marketplaces, including Jiji, Kilimall and Jumia, have also helped establish delivery of items, while smaller sellers have increasingly turned to TikTok, WhatsApp and Instagram to sell goods and other items directly to consumers.

The widespread use of mobile money has made it easier for these social-commerce businesses to receive payments without maintaining physical shops.

While delivery costs are one of the biggest obstacles to the growth of online commerce, motorcycles offer an avenue for lowering that cost while shortening delivery times.

Companies like Uber, Bolt and Little have expanded beyond traditional passenger transport into parcel delivery, competing in a market where platforms such as Glovo have established motorcycle-based delivery networks.

Last month, the government introduced a 10-year Courier Hailing Service Provider permit for digital delivery platforms, separating the licensing requirements for app-based delivery services from those governing traditional courier operators.

The permit is over three times more expensive – a Sh100,000 licence fee and a similar annual operating fee – as the government seeks to grow revenue from the rapidly expanding sector.

More banks are racing to join the 100-plus branch club, even as customers increasingly embrace mobile and internet banking, signalling that physical outlets are taking on new roles beyond traditional cash and cheque transactions.

NCBA crossed the 100-branch threshold in Kenya in May 2025 with the opening of outlets at Tatu City and Nord Mall in Ruiru. Family Bank, which currently has 97 branches, has said it plans to open another in Upper Hill this week and cross the 100 mark before year-end.

The lender, which listed on the Nairobi Securities Exchange last June, is seeking to join KCB Bank Kenya, Equity Bank Kenya, Co-operative Bank of Kenya and NCBA, which now have more than 100 branches in the country.

‘We currently have 97 branches spread across 32 counties, but under our strategic plan, we want to increase that number. This year, we expect to cross the 100-branch mark. We need to be closer to our customers,’ said Nancy Njau, chief executive at Family Bank.

‘We continue to invest in digital banking where 92 percent of our transactions are happening, but we want to be physically present, particularly in areas with a large concentration of MSMEs, because that is our niche.

The push for larger branch networks comes amid rapid digital adoption, but banks say physical outlets remain important as urbanisation and the emergence of new commercial centres create fresh pockets of demand for financial services.

Besides Family Bank, Diamond Trust Bank (DTB) has 92 branches, up from 84 two years ago, and is among lenders still planning further expansion.

KCB, Equity and Co-op, which have the largest branch networks in Kenya at 223, 222 and 218, respectively, have also continued to expand. Co-op has recorded the biggest growth among the three, rising from 171 branches in 2024, while Equity has grown from 197 and KCB from 207.

The expansion is also evident among mid-sized lenders. I and M Bank has increased its Kenyan outlets from 41 to 73 under its iMara 3.0 strategy for 2024-2026, which targets deeper activity in the retail and small and medium enterprise (SME) segments.

Sidian Bank has grown its footprint from 44 branches in 2024 to 60 currently, joining I and M in the expansion journey. Both lenders are seeking a bigger share of the retail and SME market, with I and M targeting the 100-branch mark.

The expansion reflects a push to capture business from SMEs spread across established towns as well as fast-growing urban centres and trading hubs.

Towns such as Ruiru, Kikuyu, Thika, Karuri, Ongata Rongai, Juja and Kitengela have recorded population growth, encouraging banks, microfinance institutions and saccos to establish physical outlets.

As businesses expand beyond Nairobi and traditional urban centres, banks are positioning branches closer to entrepreneurs who need working capital, asset finance, trade finance and other services that often require more interaction with banking staff.

Kingdom Bank, one of the smaller lenders expanding its network, recently opened a branch in Naivasha, taking its physical count to 29 from 20 two years ago. The Co-op Bank subsidiary has been opening branches in areas with sustained commercial activity and demand for MSME-focused financial services.

‘Naivasha has strong economic activity across agriculture, hospitality, trade and industry. Our presence is intended to strengthen access to financing for businesses and individuals who are part of this growth and require responsive, practical banking support,’ said the lender.

Banks pursuing mass-market customers see a wider branch network giving them visibility and credibility in new markets while providing a physical point of contact for customers who are less comfortable with fully digital financial services.

The role of branches is also shifting from traditional transaction points to advisory and relationship-management centres. Lenders increasingly use their outlets to guide customers on investments, borrowing, insurance, wealth management and business financing.

The advisory role is particularly key for SMEs, where lending decisions depend on an understanding of the business, its cash flows and growth prospects.

Continued investment in branches, however, comes against accelerating digital adoption, which has made many routine banking transactions possible without visiting a branch.

Mobile money, banking apps, internet banking and agency banking have reduced the need for physical access for services such as low-value loan applications, cash transfers, payments, balance enquiries and bill settlement.

Banks are increasingly using digital platforms to handle high-volume, low-value transactions while reserving branches for more complex interactions, advisory services and customer acquisition.

The seeming contradiction between expanding branch networks and growing digital usage reflects a shift towards a multi-channel banking model rather than a return to brick-and-mortar banking.

Some banks, however, have moved in the opposite direction. Absa has reduced its network from 107 branches in 2024 to 91 this year, while SBM Bank Kenya has cut outlets from 41 to 33. Stanbic Bank has also edged down from 31 to 30.

But some lenders that closed branches in locations they deemed too close to each other are returning to selected markets with a more targeted approach.

SBM Bank last week launched its 34th branch in Nanyuki, targeting businesses such as conservancies, flower and horticulture exporters, SMEs and farmers.

‘Nanyuki is exactly the kind of market our strategy is built for. The region is a high-growth economy where relationship banking and digital convenience should work together. We are determined to bring banking closer to our customers at a time when our own numbers show the model is working,’ said Bhartesh Shah, CEO at SBM Bank Kenya.

The cost of running offices under the national government jumped by a record Sh199.2 billion in the financial year to June 30, pushing the operations bill above Sh1.3 trillion despite a continued drive to contain recurrent spending.

According to the Treasury, expenditure on operations and maintenance rose by 17.82 percent to Sh1.317 trillion, up from Sh1.118 trillion a year earlier.

It was the largest annual rise as per Treasury records, highlighting the growing cost of keeping ministries, departments and agencies running despite austerity measures and procurement reforms.

The spending covers routine government costs like travel, transport, fuel, supplies, repairs, maintenance, hospitality, training, electricity, water and communication.

The jump in expenses was higher than inflation, which averaged 4.87 percent in the 12 months to June 2026. It means government operating costs rose by almost four times the pace of the general rise in prices.

The increase was nearly three times the Sh67.4 billion rise recorded in financial year 2024/25 and more than seven times the Sh26.5 billion increase in 2022/23.

It also marked an acceleration from the previous financial year when operations and maintenance expenditure rose by 6.4 percent.

The government’s operating bill has more than doubled from Sh653.7 billion in 2020/21 to Sh1.317 trillion in 2025/26. It comes at a time the Treasury maintains that the government is implementing measures to strengthen expenditure.

‘The government continues to implement measures to enhance expenditure control and ensure value for money in spending,’ Treasury said in the 2026 Budget Policy Statement.

‘The government’s effort to streamline operations and maintenance will enhance efficiency by reducing costly repairs and extending asset life cycles.’

Among the measures is continued enforcement of austerity aimed at reducing recurrent expenditure, alongside procurement reforms and the digitisation of government purchasing.

The end-to-end e-Government Procurement system was launched in July 2025 to replace fragmented and manual processes with a centralised digital platform.

Treasury says more than 1,500 procuring entities and at least 33,000 suppliers have registered on the platform.

It has been merged with the Integrated Financial Management Information System (IFMIS), Business Registration Services, e-Citizen and i-Tax as Treasury seeks to improve transparency and reduce inefficiencies.

The Treasury is also relying on better management of government assets to contain maintenance costs and reduce spending arising from inefficient use of facilities.

The reforms include commercialising public land, road corridors and training, improving office-space allocation and standardising leasing arrangements in government institutions.

Treasury is developing a comprehensive leasing framework to guide ministries, departments, agencies and counties in managing assets while creating opportunities for private-sector investment.

The government says it is piloting a Human Resource Management System across ministries and departments as part of efforts to strengthen management and control of public resources.

Despite the reforms, the latest figures suggest that the overall cost of government operations remains under pressure, raising questions on whether the measures are translating to lower spending.

The data does not show which individual spending categories accounted for the Sh199.2 billion rise, leaving the composition of the increase open to scrutiny. Operations and maintenance expenditure rose by Sh186 billion in 2021/22 ahead of the General Election before slowing to a Sh26.5 billion rise in the financial year 2022/23 – the first full financial year in President William Ruto’s administration.

It then jumped by Sh184 billion in 2023/24, followed by a Sh67.4 billion increase in 2024/25 before reaching the record Sh199.2 billion rise last year.

The slower 2024/25 increase followed the Gen Z protests against higher taxes and government wastage, which forced the administration to withdraw the Finance Bill, 2024, and impose spending cuts.

The cuts included halving spending on renovations, travel and hospitality, scrapping office refurbishment budgets and suspending new vehicle purchases except for security agencies.

Ministries were also ordered to halve advisers, a move that was expected to restrain growth in government operating costs.

At least 90 planes belonging to private aviation companies, flying schools and individuals have been abandoned at Nairobi’s Wilson Airport, choking available parking space for operational aircraft and costing the Kenya Airports Authority (KAA) revenue.

An audit of the country’s second-busiest airport by aircraft movements found that the abandoned aircraft have caused congestion, forcing flight diversions.

It is unlikely that any of the planes will fly again, and KAA has struggled to auction the aircraft in recent years as they accumulate significant parking fees.

The light planes include Cessna 402, Fokker 50, Beechcraft Baron 58, and slightly larger passenger planes such as Bombardier CRJ100s and Dash-8s.

Some are clustered while others sit alone as they increasingly take up space at Wilson Airport, underlining the growing troubles at the facility.

Auditor-General Nancy Gathungu said the grounded aircraft were occupying aircraft parking space meant for operational planes,yet some were not paying parking fees, depriving the KAA of revenue.

‘The parking garage for aircraft was congested as a result of ninety grounded aircraft occupying the apron space meant for parking of other aircraft that are operating within the airport,’ Ms Gathungu said in an audit report.

‘As a result, the airport is losing revenue because some of the grounded aircraft are not paying for the parking fees.’

KAA says it has not managed to dispose of the abandoned aircraft as fast as needed, with just about five being successfully auctioned since 2024, when Wilson had about 70 grounded planes, and it is continuing to seek buyers for the remaining planes.

‘It’s a continuous process and more are added with time. We have auctioned some and we’re continuing to seek ways to dispose of the remaining ones,’ said a KAA spokesperson.

The parking challenge has compounded several issues surrounding the airport currently, including surging safety risks due to uncontrolled high-rise developments along the airport’s flight path.

The audit also flagged the lack of a terminal building, with a corridor being used in place of a proper terminal facility, and it can only accommodate up to 50 passengers at a time.

The security screening system was also not working fully, and there was also limited parking for cars.

These issues held back the potential of what is one of Kenya’s most crucial air hubs as domestic air travel picks pace.

Wilson handles several scheduled and charter flights, tourism, medical evacuation and flight training.

The airport has also seen a significant increase in aircraft activity in recent years, putting additional pressure on its limited parking capacity.

In the year to June 2025, Wilson handled 83,855 aircraft movements, comprising landings and take-offs, compared with 65,512 in the year to June 2021. This represents a 28 percent increase in four years.

The KAA spokesperson said the increase in aircraft activity has added to the congestion challenge at the airport, alongside the grounded planes occupying valuable space.

The authority has been forced to look beyond Wilson for additional parking, with some aircraft being diverted to Orly Airpark in Olooloitikosh near Kiserian.

KAA has grappled with the junk planes, some of which are no longer airworthy or whose owners are unable or unwilling to remove them. Others have unknown owners.

The State corporation has on several occasions attempted to dispose of the aircraft through public auctions but has struggled to clear the backlog.

It is now planning to dispose of some of the aircraft as scrap metal, especially those that are no longer usable and whose owners are unable to pay the charges.

‘Even grounded planes pay for parking. The only ones that don’t pay are the ones whose owners are no longer able to and those ones are no longer usable, and those we can dispose of as scrap metal,’ the KAA spokesperson said.

In January 2024, the authority had published a list of abandoned aircraft for auction and floated a tender for an auctioneer to dispose of planes abandoned at different airports across the country.

At the time, KAA identified 92 abandoned aircraft, with Wilson accounting for 70. Another 11 were at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport, seven at Lokichoggio Airport in Turkana County and four at Malindi Airport in Kilifi.

The aircraft belonged to a mix of airlines, aviation companies, flying schools, government agencies and private individuals, including the now-defunct Fly540, Skylink, Capital Airline, Bush Air, DAC Aviation, Aerolink, Rudufu, Standard Aviation, Geo Air, Ace Air and Freedom Airlines.

Training institutions including 99 Flying School and Flight Training Centre, as well as institutions such as Moi University and the National Air Support Department, also had grounded aircraft on the list. Individuals, including Khalsi Manghit, were also named among owners.

The latest audit shows that the disposal problem has persisted, with the number of grounded aircraft at Wilson now standing at 90.

KAA has not disclosed how many of the aircraft listed for auction in 2024 remain at the airport or how many are newly grounded.

The continued occupation of the apron is particularly significant because Wilson’s aircraft traffic has grown substantially since the Covid-19 period. The growth means operational aircraft are competing for increasingly scarce parking space with planes that are no longer flying.

Aircraft operators are charged parking fees based on the size of the plane. Under the published airport tariff, aircraft weighing up to 10,000kg pay $6 (Sh777) a day, while those weighing more than 300,000kg pay $130 (Sh16,831). The charges apply to aircraft parked for more than six continuous hours.

Operators also pay landing and take-off charges, ranging from $10 (Sh1,290) to $2,100 (Sh271,877) depending on the aircraft’s weight and the time of operation.

The revenue loss comes amid dwindling revenues for the airports operator. In the year to June 2025, KAA’s profit nearly halved to Sh3.8 billion, after revenues dropped by about Sh1.1 billion.

Life pends on land, and so does the economy. When land loses productivity, the damage does not stop at the farm gate. It affects food production, livestock, water availability, incomes, supply chains and public finances.

Yet land degradation and desertification are still often discussed simply as environmental concerns, rather than economic risks.

That is the bigger question emerging from Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, where the 17th session of the UN Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD COP17) opened on August 17 under the theme ‘Restoring Land. Restoring Hope’.

The two-week summit brings together governments, business, finance, scientists and communities to advance action on land restoration and drought resilience. The second week is particularly important because the Riyadh-Ulaanbaatar Action Agenda is designed to connect political commitments with practical solutions through four thematic days.

On August 24, Finance Day will ask the question that determines if ambitious restoration plans become reality. Focus is on mobilising public and private finance, integrating land into investment decisions and creating opportunities for large-scale restoration.

Restoration cannot depend indefinitely on development aid and government budgets. Healthy landscapes must increasingly be treated as economic infrastructure capable of attracting investment.

August 25 is Water Day, shifting attention to drought as a risk that can be managed rather than a disaster to be mourned. Discussions will examine how healthier soils, vegetation and landscapes can retain water, reduce erosion and strengthen drought resilience.

Then comes Land and People Day on August 26. Here, the conversation must recognise the people who understand these landscapes.

Pastoralists and local communities should not merely be beneficiaries of restoration programmes. Their knowledge, institutions and experience must help shape them.

For Kenya, this is an opportunity to demonstrate that rangelands are productive natural assets.

Finally, August 27 is Food Systems and Soil Health Day. It returns the conversation to its foundation: soil. Food systems cannot be resilient when land is losing its fertility. The day will examine investment, innovation and measurable approaches to improving soil health.

Kenya should approach these discussions as a country with a compelling economic proposition. Investing in restoration can protect agricultural productivity, strengthen livestock systems, secure water, create rural enterprises and reduce the economic shocks associated with drought.

The business case is, therefore, straightforward: restoring land is not an environmental expense. It is an investment in Kenya’s productive capacity.

Restoring land means restoring hope. Because all life depends on land, Kenya’s future depends on getting this right.

Showmanship might have been John Ngumi’s trademark when pursuing mega deals, but it has not helped the flamboyant investment banker shake off graft sleuths pursuing him over the Sh6.2 billion Telkom purchase in the sunset years of Uhuru Kenyatta’s presidency.

The former Safaricom chairperson could soon face graft charges in an extension of his legal tussle with the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC), even after he bent over backwards to share a good chunk of the windfall he earned from advising Jamhuri Holdings on its exit from Telkom Kenya.

Jamhuri Holdings, a Mauritius-based private equity firm, sold its shareholding in Telkom Kenya to the Kenyan government for Sh6.2 billion in a hastily crafted transaction that attracted the attention of the anti-graft watchdog.

Mr Ngumi moved to the High Court’s Constitutional and Human Rights Division seeking to end the EACC investigation, arguing that the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) had decided not to charge him over the multibillion-shilling deal.

However, the court disagreed and ordered the case transferred to the High Court division that handles corruption and economic crimes.

This came as the EACC revealed that it was in touch with the DPP over having the investment banker charged for his alleged involvement in the irregular purchase of Telkom Kenya’s shareholding from Jamhuri Holdings.

For a while, everything appeared to be going well for Mr Ngumi. He had helped the Uhuru Kenyatta government stitch together numerous deals, including the country’s debut Eurobond, and was later appointed Safaricom chairperson.

Hell broke loose for the banker with a taste for the finer things in life when President Kenyatta’s preferred successor, Raila Odinga, lost the August 2022 presidential election to William Ruto.

Shortly after the Kenya Kwanza administration came to power, Mr Ngumi rushed to the High Court’s Constitutional and Human Rights Division to obtain restraining orders against his possible arrest by the graft agency.

He argued that the EACC investigation was largely politically motivated and that he was at risk of arrest simply because he was an ally of Mr Kenyatta.

A month before he moved to court, Mr Ngumi appeared before the National Assembly to explain his role in the deal and why he had been paid $3.07 million.

At the time, he could not have imagined that three years later he would still be locked in a legal tussle, a pursuit he later told the court was motivated by his being the ‘blue-eyed boy of the former government.’

Shortly after being grilled by Parliament, Mr Ngumi resolved to stretch his generosity by paying Sh111.9 million in taxes to the State.

Mr Ngumi was paid the $3.07 million by Jamhuri Holdings for advising the private equity fund on its exit from the telecoms operator.

He uncharacteristically decided to share a big chunk of this windfall with the taxman, whose maxim has been to collect neither more nor less from the taxpayer.

Had the five percent withholding tax been applied to his Sh362.1 million fee, KRA would have collected about Sh18.1 million.

Instead, Mr Ngumi said he paid Sh111.9 million, giving the taxman about Sh93.8 million more than the withholding amount.

‘I made a commitment to Parliament that I would pay within one week and that is what I have done. As a consultant, I am required to pay five percent withholding tax but out of good faith, I have decided to pay 30 percent as though it is a Pay As You Earn consideration,’ Mr Ngumi told the Business Daily.

He also sought to explain to legislators why he had to be paid such a huge fee. At a joint committee hearing, he said Jamhuri Holdings needed high-level advice to divest because it could not afford to make mistakes.

‘I was paid the money because I was the best in the business. They valued the advice I gave them and it was a willing buyer willing seller (transaction),’ he said.

But the high point of the grilling was Mr Ngumi’s decision to share much of these fees with the State, in a move that many saw as his attempt to extricate himself from the trap being laid by the new administration against allies of former President Kenyatta.

Mr Ngumi may have thought that paying more to the taxman than was legally required would help shake off his pursuers.

Unfortunately, this demonstration of magnanimity has not saved Mr Ngumi, a self-described ‘deal maker par excellence.’

Mr Ngumi got an early break in raising money in the 1980s, during the coffee boom days.

At Grindlays, he helped arrange annual offshore financing for the Coffee Board of Kenya, raising money in London to make advance payments to farmers before they sold their produce.

That was in the nascent days of investment banking, during the lean Daniel arap Moi years, when the word ‘Eurobond’ – let alone the billions associated with the dollar-denominated bond – was unheard of even within corporate finance circles.

From arranging offshore financing for Kenya’s coffee sector in the 1980s, Mr Ngumi rose through investment banking and his Loita Capital Partners years.

He went on to structure major corporate and government deals before crossing paths with Mr Kenyatta in 2011, when the son of Jomo Kenyatta was serving as Finance Minister.

When they first met, Mr Ngumi said in a previous interview, they talked about ways of bringing down the high cost of interest.

‘The world is awash with capital. We just have to figure out how to access it,’ Mr Ngumi recalled telling the then Finance Minister when he asked him about options for giving the government leverage when dealing with local investors.

As the relationship between the two blossomed, so did Mr Ngumi’s profile, with many coming to regard him as the blue-eyed boy of Corporate Kenya.

He has been involved in several major deals, including Safaricom’s first corporate bond issuance when it was just finding its feet after being hived off from Telkom, and the debut Sh174 billion Eurobond issued by the Jubilee government in 2014.

However, much of this information was not gleaned by journalists or financial analysts from various filings; it was readily provided to the public by Mr Ngumi himself, including through paid-for content in which the banker was celebrated as the ‘master corporate fundraiser.’

‘I have had a good fortune of never needing to apply for a job in my life,’ Mr Ngumi said in one sponsored piece.

He went on to suggest that he may have been lucky to have come of age at a time when senior government officials were willing to take a chance on unproven young people such as himself.

‘That said, I challenge anyone to show I have not given my best in any position I have occupied,’ he said.

Mr Ngumi has never made it a secret that he loves the good things in life – luxurious cars, homes and the trappings of success.

Speaking with the measured, clipped tones associated with an Oxford education, the St Peter’s College, Oxford graduate, who studied Philosophy, Politics and Economics (PPE), once reflected on his investment-banking years in a podcast:

‘We were incredibly successful but also incredibly extravagant.’

There is something of Oscar Wilde in Mr Ngumi – the Irish, Oxford-educated playwright who embraced the good life with gusto, only to find that success and extravagance could make uneasy companions.

Wilde, who studied at Magdalen College, became famous for his flamboyant lifestyle before his fortunes collapsed and he was declared bankrupt.

Known for saying that ‘any man who lives within his means suffers from a lack of imagination,’ Wilde never managed to arrest his descent into bankruptcy.

Mr Ngumi, who seems to have a nose for money, has so far avoided Wilde’s fate.

He has admitted to being mortgaged five times, and court records are littered with cases in which he has been pursued by creditors – from the Sh11.4 million debt owed to Nibrish Chandulal Shah to a long-running dispute with the defunct Lonrho Motors over a BMW 318W that he acquired around 2000.

Yet the latest challenge facing the veteran dealmaker is not a simple challenge from a bank or a creditor. It is a challenge from the State.

The biggest mistake businesses make is believing that technology is an end in itself. Without it being purpose-led, there is no true value.

History is littered with examples of groundbreaking innovations that failed to gain traction and simple ideas that transformed industries.

The difference was whether the innovation solved a real problem, met a genuine need and created meaningful value for people.

As businesses rush to embrace artificial intelligence, automation, drones and other technologies, that distinction has never been more important.

Consider a knife. In the hands of a surgeon, it can save a life; in the hands of a chef, it can prepare a meal; in the wrong hands, it can cause harm. The knife itself is neither good nor bad. The impact of technology is determined not by the intentions, systems and people behind it.

Across boardrooms, conversations are dominated by AI, automation, drones, robotics and analytics. The pressure to keep up is immense. Organisations that succeed are rarely those that adopt technology first; they are often those that identify the clearest purpose for using it.

Kenya’s mobile money revolution offers a lesson. M-Pesa did not succeed because it was technologically superior to every financial innovation of the time. It succeeded because it solved a problem millions of people faced and addressed a real need.

The story is no different in healthcare. In remote parts of Africa, a shortage of doctors is not always the greatest challenge. Distance is. A patient may be hours away from a hospital, but drones are helping bridge that gap by delivering medicines, blood and vaccines in minutes.

The same technology that delivers blood to a rural clinic can help protect endangered wildlife. Drones in Africa are being used to monitor animal populations, detect illegal activities and survey vast landscapes. In one setting, the drone becomes a healthcare tool. In another, it becomes a conservation gadget. Technology remains unchanged; only the purpose differs.

Agriculture is another compelling comparison. For generations, farmers relied on observation and experience to make decisions on planting, irrigation and pest control. Today, drones and AI can analyse crop health in real time and provide insights that improve yields while reducing costs. Here, technology is not replacing the farmer but enhancing ability to make informed decisions.

Even AI, perhaps the most debated technology today, follows the same pattern. AI can help doctors detect diseases earlier, assist teachers in personalising learning and help businesses improve customer service.

At the same time, it can be used to generate misinformation, facilitate fraud or invade privacy. The contrasting outcomes are not a reflection of the technology itself. They are a reflection of how humans choose to deploy it.

Business leaders should pay close attention to this distinction. Too often, organisations pursue technology because it is fashionable.

They invest in digital transformation programmes, AI platforms or automation tools without first identifying the problem they are attempting to solve. As a result, many technology projects fail not because the technology is inadequate, but because the purpose is unclear.