Category: Business Daily

Kenya has the third highest number of employees at the African Development Bank (AfDB), pointing to the big influence that the country has in the pan-African lender.

An analysis of AfDB’s disclosures shows that 124 Kenyans, led by eight senior executives including a Vice-President were working at the pan-African lender at the end of December 2025, accounting for 5.4 percent of the lender’s 2,263 staff drawn from 77 countries.

Cote D’Ivoire, which hosts the headquarters of AfDB tops the list of staff with 347 followed by Tunisia at 127. Nigeria is joint third with Kenya. Neighboring Uganda has 83 staff while Rwanda has 50 employees.

Kevin Kariuki, Vice President for Power, Energy, Climate and Green Growth at AfDB is the most senior Kenyan at the lender, followed by eight others serving as directors and managers.

Kenya has held this position for the past two years, after rising from fourth in 2023 when it had 114 citizens working at the institution.

The disclosures show that AfDB hired one Kenyan last year compared to 19 from Cote D’Ivoire, four from Tunisia and six from Uganda.

The lender however says it is still understaffed.

‘Staffing and budget constraints remain a challenge for field missions, especially in providing adequate implementation support to clients and borrowers,’ AfDB says in the latest disclosures.

The strong presence of Kenyans at the pan-African lender comes despite the country being one of the smallest shareholders of AfDB, at 1.034 percent with Egypt being the biggest shareholder at 8.49 percent followed by Nigeria (7.57) and Morocco at 6.37 percent.

Kenya is one of the shareholders of AfDB with a stake of 1.034 percent, significantly behind Egypt, Nigeria and the US whose shares are 8.5 percent, 7.6 percent and 5.5 percent respectively.

AfDB draws its employees from the member countries with the lender’s top executive positions including the President and Vice presidents mainly occupied by Africans.

Kenya last year missed a chance to increase its shareholding after failing to take up additional 6,715 shares that were valued at an equivalent of Sh11.9 billion. Egypt, Nigeria and the USA snapped up these shares.

Egypt has 21 staff working at the AfDB, Morocco has 32 while South Africa, which is the eighth biggest shareholder of the lender, has 28 employees.

Germany and the USA, the fourth and fifth biggest shareholders of AfDB respectively, have eight and 45 employees, at the lender in that order.

The pan-African lender has steadily increased its staff count in the past three years from 1,798 in 2023 to 1,897 a year later and 2,263 last year.

AfDB says that increasing the staff numbers remains a priority, in what could see more Kenyans join the lender at either the headquarters in Abidjan or the five regional offices spread across Africa.

The pan-Africa has over the past decade become a key financier of development projects in Kenya, notably in the energy and roads sector.

AfDB has injected billions of shillings to fund the Last Mile Connectivity project, which has been key in scaling up electricity access amongst low-income homes and those in rural Kenya.

The lender also partly funded the Nairobi-Thika superhighway and is also financing construction of a highway linking Kenya to South Sudan and the Kenol-Sagana-Marua highway.

The capital markets Investor Compensation Fund (ICF) grew by Sh1 billion to Sh6.84 billion in the year to June 2025, on higher income from government securities and transaction fees from trades at the Nairobi bourse.

The fund, which was established in 1995, compensates stock market investors for losses of up to Sh200,000 in the event of a failure of a licenced broker.

Disclosures by the Capital Markets Authority (CMA) in its 2024/2025 annual report show that the fund’s interest income from investments such as bonds and Treasury bills grew by 25 percent to Sh845.96 million in the period.

The interest income was the biggest source of new funds into the ICF in the year, ahead of transaction fees from trades at the Nairobi Securities Exchange (NSE) that grew to Sh195.2 million from Sh104.6 million in June 2024.

The ICF also banked Sh19 million from financial penalties levied on licenced entities by the CMA, and a Sh31.6 million gain on its investment in the stock exchange.

The bulk of the income was invested in Treasury bills, raising the holdings of the short term securities from Sh1.12 billion to Sh2.17 billion.

Investments held in the form of Treasury bonds grew marginally from Sh4.59 billion to Sh4.61 billion, and that in equities at the NSE from Sh51.3 million to Sh78.9 million.

In addition to the financial penalties and interest income from government securities, the ICF is also entitled to hold interest accruing funds received from subscribers to public issues such as IPOs between the day of closing an issue and making refunds.

From the trading at the NSE, the fund is paid a commission of 0.01 percent per equities trade, and 0.004 percent on a bonds trade. The ICF has now grown five-fold in the past decade -from Sh1.3 billion in 2015- reflecting the lack of withdrawals in a period when the market has not seen a failure of a stockbroker.

He is expected to help rekindle commercial relations between the world’s largest economy and East Africa’s biggest, at a time when America’s soft power has come under strain following President Donald Trump’s tariff wars.

For a man who has spent much of his career shunning publicity while quietly shaping some of Kenya’s most important financial institutions, the appointment marks yet another chapter in a career defined more by influence than visibility.

Ask anyone what they know about the former CMA chief, and the most personal detail they are likely to mention is that he is widely reported to be the son of Francis Muthaura, the influential Head of Public Service during President Mwai Kibaki’s administration.

Yet Mr Muthaura himself has rarely, if ever, spoken publicly about his private life, preferring to let the weight of his résumé, rather than the prominence of his surname, define him.

While little is heard about his privileged background and the trappings that come with it, Mr Muthaura is not one to walk into a room full of opportunities and let one pass him by.

“You shouldn’t necessarily wait for your turn because it just might not come,” Mr Muthaura said during a public talk six years ago.

“If you wait too long, the conversation will move on, you will lose your chance, or worse still, you’ll be that person who is chiming in on point one when a meeting is at point five… Let your voice be heard.”

In the talk, he recalled returning to Kenya as a 22-year-old postgraduate, armed with fresh ideas and eager to make his mark after joining a leading law firm.

It did not take long before the firm’s managing partner, whom he said was about the same age as his father, was assembling a team for a multibillion-shilling transaction.

Confident that his master’s degree had prepared him for the task, the young lawyer walked into the senior partner’s office and offered his services.

The boldness paid off. Although his first assignment came back covered in red ink and question marks-a consequence, he admitted, of youthful haste-it was enough to convince the managing partner that the young recruit had both the ambition and potential to handle bigger responsibilities.

“I learnt two key lessons: One, speed is nothing without content, and Two, answering the question asked is often just the beginning and not the end of many assignments.”

That experience appears to have shaped his approach to work: quietly building substance while remaining ready to seize opportunities when they arise.

When he left the CMA in 2019 after a 14-year stint, he said his phone did not ring for six months.

That did not trouble him. He quietly bided his time before resurfacing in April 2020 as chief operating officer of ICEA Lion General Insurance.

Six months later, he was promoted to chief executive officer following the retirement of Steven Oluoch after eight years at the helm.

Less than a year later, in September 2021, he stepped down on medical grounds after an accident.

“This appointment arises from the need for Paul Muthaura to step down from office in line with medical advice to allow for his complete recovery following an accident in early 2021,” ICEA chairman James Ndegwa said at the time.

He later headed ACMI before re-emerging last month as chief executive of AmCham.

Clearly, Mr Muthaura’s greatest indulgence appears to be neither the spotlight nor the trappings of corporate life, but the pursuit of knowledge.

One could easily imagine that while other conference delegates in Mombasa unwound over drinks, he found comfort thumbing through a book, poring over a report or refining the speech he would deliver the following day.

His academic journey mirrors the same quiet, methodical approach that has defined his career.

Mr Muthaura studied law at the University of Warwick before specialising in Banking and Finance Law at the London School of Economics and Political Science, one of the world’s leading centres for financial regulation.

Never one to stop learning, he later earned a Master of Philosophy in Business Administration from the Maastricht School of Management in the Netherlands, complementing it with an Executive Diploma in Financial Management from KCA University.

He is also an Honorary Fellow of the Institute of Certified Secretaries and a Certified Executive and Systemic Team Coach.

His qualifications-spanning law, finance, business strategy and leadership-perhaps explain why, despite his aversion to publicity, he has repeatedly landed some of the country’s most coveted corporate roles.

There are those who would argue that intellectual prowess did not always translate into regulatory success. He headed the CMA at a time when the regulator was often criticised as a watchdog that could not bite.

He left office with concerns over market oversight still lingering, particularly following allegations of insider trading and market manipulation surrounding transactions such as Rubis Energie’s acquisition of KenolKobil.

He later acknowledged the challenges of enforcing the Capital Markets Authority Act.

“We have tried to be a very proactive entity but we faced undue challenges from delays in court system. That has translated to the level of confidence we have seen in the market,” he said.

At a strategic level, critics would probably point to the prolonged listing drought during his tenure as his most visible blemish.

He left office in 2019 after the Nairobi Securities Exchange had gone five years without a single initial public offering, while activity in the corporate bond market had also waned.

Between 2014 and 2019, the Exchange recorded only listings by introduction, mostly from smaller firms.

Yet his tenure was not defined solely by controversy.

He helped strengthen Kenya’s regulatory framework and position the CMA within regional and global capital markets.

During his tenure, the CMA was named Africa’s most innovative capital markets regulator for four consecutive years, from 2015 to 2018.

Products such as the Growth Enterprise Market Segment (GEMS), Gold Exchange Traded Funds, the Ibuka programme and the derivatives market were all introduced during his watch, although their uptake has remained below expectations.

After nearly two decades in public service and the privileges that come with high office, Muthaura says it is easy for leaders to lose perspective.

Some, he observed, become so consumed by their own importance that they “feel an overwhelming urge to pinch a nose because they need to know people.”

He says he has consciously tried not to let the trappings of power get to his head.

“Please, don’t believe your own hype.”

Auditors have expressed doubt over the long-term survival of the State-owned Kenya Meat Commission (KMC) due to sustained losses that are straining its ability to continue as a going concern.

The meat supplier’s net loss in the year to June 2025 more than doubled to Sh410 million from Sh168 million a year earlier, after sliding back to the red following a brief profit run in 2022.

KMC’s management attributed the increased loss making in the review period to cash flow challenges resulting from unpaid bills by several State agencies, which comprise the bulk of its clientele.

An audit of its book by the Auditor-General’s office revealed that the firm is also operating far below capacity due to worn-out machines, huge unpaid debt from suppliers, and is struggling to sustain its operations.

‘In the circumstances, the continued accumulation of losses signifies persistent financial underperformance and sustainability challenges, casting doubt on the Commission’s ability to operate profitably and achieve its financial objectives,’ said Auditor-General Nancy Gathungu in the audit report.

During the period, KMC’s sales declined by Sh67 million to Sh1.6 billion from Sh1.71 billion in 2024, driven by low livestock supply due to a huge debt owed to farmers, some of which has been pending for years.

Its financial statements reveal that its debt to farmers and other creditors, including unremitted statutory deductions, increased to Sh488 million from Sh337 million, a rise of over Sh150 million.

The debt included Sh83 million unremitted staff pension funds and Sh115 million unpaid corporate income tax owed to the Kenya Revenue Authority.

At the same time, the amount it is owed by different debtors increased by Sh1.8 million to ShSh694 million from Sh692.2 million, most of which it is owed by several government agencies.

The audit found that State agencies owed KMC Sh552 million, accounting for 80 percent of the firm’s receivables, and had been pending for over three months.

It was also owed Sh19 million in rental income, and had another Sh126 million outstanding receivables that was unsupported, disputed, or untraceable, raising doubts over their recovery.

Amid the mounting debt and losses, KMC has been unable to service many of its equipment, which have since become obsolete and unserviceable, reducing its production capacity.

‘The absence of timely repair, replacement, and modernization of obsolete machinery has compromised production efficiency, increased operational costs, and limited the Commission’s ability to meet the demand for its products,’ said the Auditor-General.

KMC’s fortunes began to improve after President Uhuru Kenyatta’s administration replaced its management with military leadership, as part of a larger operation to revitalize loss-making State entities.

The year ended June 2022, the first full year one under military leadership, marked the firm’s best performance in decades, with a profit of Sh242 million, overturning a loss of Sh34 million the year before.

However, in January 2023, President William Ruto reversed the military’s takeover, moving KMC from the control of the Ministry of Defence back to the Ministry of Agriculture under the State Department of Livestock Development.

Records at the National Treasury show that, although the firm had been in the red for over a decade, its financial position began to improve in 2019, leading to a cut in its losses from Sh117 million in 2019 to Sh96 million by June 2020.

The trend continued into 2021, when the meat supplier’s losses decreased further to Sh34 million, before it turned a profit of Sh242 million in 2022.

However, the upturn was short-lived, with profits dwindling to Sh180 million in 2023 before reversing to a loss in the year to June 2024, which more than doubled in the year to June 2025.

KMC has yet to disclose its results for the year ending June 2026 and audit reports are often delayed before publication. The financial performance could jeopardise plans to privatise the State corporation, which are intended to improve its long-term efficiency and viability.

Businessman Yagnesh Devani’s bid to end his prosecution over the Triton oil scandal has taken a new turn after the High Court rejected his constitutional petition seeking to quash four criminal cases against him.

Justice Roselyne Aburili ruled that Mr Devani’s petition raised issues that should be determined by the criminal trial court rather than constitutional litigation.

She reckoned that the trial over the alleged irregular loss of Sh7.6 billion from Kenya Pipeline Company (KPC) that was started by the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) should continue to a conclusion.

The verdict comes 20 months after a Nairobi magistrate’s court permitted the DPP to withdraw corruption-related charges against Mr Devani and Triton Petroleum amid objections from his co-accused who had not been freed from the suit.

Mr Devani was charged in 2024 after his forcible return to Kenya, having remained at large since 2008 when authorities accused the KPC of releasing petroleum products worth nearly Sh7.6 billion to his company, Triton Petroleum.

The oil products were being held at KPC as collateral for bank loans and were released without the knowledge of several financiers, including KCB, Glencore and Fortis Bank, which had funded the imports for Triton and were the legal owners of the reserves.

The judge found that Mr Devani had failed to demonstrate that the DPP acted unlawfully, abused prosecutorial powers or violated his constitutional rights in pursuing the charges.

“This court sitting as a constitutional court or a judicial review, may only interfere where it is shown that criminal proceedings have been instituted for reasons other than enforcement of criminal law or otherwise abuse of the court process,” said Justice Aburili in a July 3 judgment.

She added: “The proceedings initiated by the DPP… to continue until conclusion.”

In October 2024, the magistrate allowed the prosecution to withdraw the charges against Mr Devani and Triton as the DPP prepared fresh charges against the businessman and the oil firm.

The fresh prosecution was also short-lived.

The DPP later applied to withdraw the Devani criminal case, citing the death of some witnesses and the unwillingness of others to testify.

The magistrate allowed the withdrawal on October 28, 2024, triggering confusion over the effect of the July 3 verdict by the High Court.

In his heyday, Mr Devani courted high profile political links, including cabinet secretaries. He lived a lavish lifestyle of fast cars, sharp suits and big parties.

The petition, dated July 13, 2023, stemmed from four criminal cases filed in 2009 and 2011 following the collapse of Triton Petroleum, then one of Kenya’s largest oil marketing companies.

Mr Devani, the company’s founder and chairman, faced more than 20 counts, including conspiracy to defraud, theft, obtaining by false pretences and fraudulent disposal of mortgaged goods.

Court records show Triton collapsed in 2008 and was placed under receivership before liquidation.

Investigators later opened criminal investigations into Triton’s financing and petroleum storage transactions involving KPC and foreign financiers.

Mr Devani remained in the United Kingdom for about 16 years before his extradition to Kenya in January 2024 under a long-standing warrant of arrest.

While in the United Kingdom, he filed the July 2023 High Court petition seeking declarations that the prosecutions were unlawful and sought orders quashing all four criminal cases and an injunction restraining the DPP from pursuing them.

He argued that the charges arose from commercial agreements signed in 2004 involving Triton, KPC, KCB, Emirates National Oil Corporation and Fortis Bank (Nederland) N.V.

The businessman maintained that those disputes belonged before civil courts rather than criminal courts.

Mr Devani also argued that KCB had recovered its debt under a March 2009 deed of settlement after he surrendered assets to satisfy outstanding liabilities.

According to the petition, Triton had annual turnover exceeding Sh70 billion, employed about 3,000 people, controlled 39 percent of Kenya’s oil import market and paid taxes worth Sh800 million annually since 2005.

He argued that continuing the related criminal charges after that settlement amounted to an abuse of the criminal process.

Before withdrawing the criminal suit, the DPP opposed the petition, saying investigators from the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission and the Directorate of Criminal Investigations had gathered sufficient evidence to support prosecution.

The High Court has upheld Kenya Power’s decision to terminate a Sh410.6 million electricity poles supply contract after finding the supplier repeatedly failed to meet delivery deadlines.

The court dismissed Inter Tropical Timber Trading’s Sh284.9 million breach-of-contract claim, ruling that an expired commercial contract cannot be revived through later emails, negotiations or continued engagement between the parties.

“The email of May 4, 2016 therefore affords the Plaintiff (Inter Tropical Timber Trading Ltd) no legal foundation upon which to anchor its claim,” the court said in a decision that strengthens strict enforcement of contractual deadlines.

The dispute stemmed from a June 2012 contract under which Inter Tropical was to supply 29,500 treated poles to Kenya Power for Sh410.6 million. The poles were initially to be delivered to the utility’s stores in Ukunda, Malindi and Voi over an 18-month period ending in February 2014.

Inter Tropical sued after Kenya Power terminated the contract in January 2017. It told the court it invested heavily to perform the contract by establishing wood treatment plants in Mwea and Eldoret, buying transport trucks, sourcing timber and hiring staff.

It said the investments were financed through bank loans secured by directors’ personal guarantees and matrimonial property.

The company sued in July 2018 arguing that Kenya Power frustrated the contract by changing delivery locations, suspending deliveries and delaying purchase orders before eventually declaring the contract expired in January 2017.

It sought a declaration that Kenya Power had unlawfully breached the supply contract, alongside Sh284.9 million in special damages, general damages, interest and costs, arguing that the utility’s actions caused it substantial financial losses after it invested heavily to perform the contract.

It maintained that the utility’s conduct created a legitimate expectation that deliveries would resume and that Kenya Power was therefore barred from relying on the contractual deadlines.

Its witness in court was the company’s director, Geoffrey Nganga Kariuki, who tabled documentary evidence to support the company’s claim.

But Kenya Power denied breaching the agreement. It said the delivery point was moved to Nyeri in July 2013 after discussions with the supplier and with its written approval because the new location was closer to the supplier’s operations.

The utility also argued that it granted numerous extensions after the supplier failed to meet agreed delivery schedules but the outstanding poles were never supplied.

The court held that Kenya Power lawfully terminated the contract after it expired. The court found Inter Tropical Timber Trading Ltd repeatedly failed to deliver treated wooden electricity distribution poles despite receiving several extensions of time.

The extensions of time granted by Kenya Power were each explicitly time-bound, the court said.

“I cannot therefore blame the defendant for choosing to terminate the contract due to the plaintiffs inability to perform its obligations under it,” said the judge.

The court noted that by the time Kenya Power issued the termination/expiry notice in January 2017, the contract had long expired by effluxion of time due to the supplier’s failure to deliver the 12,865 poles by November 1, 2015.

Further, the court agreed that the relocation of deliveries was a valid contractual variation because both parties accepted it in writing.

The court found that Inter Tropical remained in material breach because it failed to deliver the outstanding 12,865 poles despite repeated extensions.

“Having carefully considered the evidence on record, I do find that it was the Plaintiff who was in material breach of the Contract,” the court said. “The termination of the contract was a direct consequence of the Plaintiff’s own persistent failure to fulfil its contractual obligations.”

The court also rejected the company’s claim for payment for undelivered poles, holding that the contract required payment only after delivery.

It further dismissed claims for losses arising from idle machinery, storage costs, depreciation and staff expenses after finding they had not been strictly proved.

Kenyans are living longer than before. Advances in healthcare, better nutrition and healthier lifestyles mean more people can look forward to reaching retirement and enjoy many fulfilling years.

While this is an achievement, it also presents one of our country’s greatest financial challenges. Longer lives require larger retirement savings, greater financial discipline and a rethink of what retirement looks like.

The question is no longer simply whether you will retire. It is if you can afford to live well throughout what could be another 30 years after leaving formal employment.

According to the Retirement Benefits Authority, Kenya’s pension industry continues to make progress.

As of December 2025, retirement benefits assets had grown to approximately Sh2.8 trillion, while formal pension scheme membership exceeded 7.5 million. This reflects stronger regulation, improved governance and the higher mandatory contributions introduced under the NSSF Act, 2013.

These milestones, however, should not create a false sense of security. For many Kenyans, NSSF is viewed as the ultimate retirement plan. In reality, it should be the foundation of one.

While enhanced NSSF contributions represent a step towards improving retirement outcomes, they are unlikely, on their own, to provide sufficient income for most middle-income earners to maintain their lifestyle in retirement.

Because inflation continues to erode purchasing power, a retirement that lasts two or three decades demands a serious look at daily costs. Housing, food, transport, utilities and lifestyle expenses will continue in retirement.

This creates a “retirement funding gap” – the difference between the income people will need and what compulsory retirement savings are likely to provide.

Closing that gap requires additional savings through occupational pension schemes, individual retirement benefits and voluntary contributions made throughout one’s working life.

Healthcare is an equally key challenge. While medical advances are helping us live longer, they also mean more years managing chronic illnesses and age-related conditions. Healthcare costs are rising by around 11 percent annually.

Despite these realities, many Kenyans delay retirement planning. Younger workers believe retirement is too far to deserve attention.

Others wait until they receive a promotion or higher pay before they begin saving. Worse still, many withdraw their pension benefits whenever they change jobs.

Money invested early earns returns, and those returns generate further returns through compound growth. Someone who starts saving in their 20s or 30s can contribute considerably less over their lifetime than someone who waits until their 40s.

Providing access to a pension scheme is only the start. Companies should promote financial literacy, helping staff understand the importance of starting early, increasing contributions over time and preserving retirement savings.

The financial services industry must continue to innovate. The earlier Kenyans start saving, the more time their money has to grow, the smaller the retirement funding gap becomes and the greater our confidence that our later years will be lived with financial security, independence and dignity.

A standoff over a Sh299 billion service fee over 13 years prompted the Ruto administration to cancel a deal with a consortium of French contractors for the construction of the Rironi-Mau summit toll road.

Fresh Treasury disclosures have revealed the secret fee – Sh23 billion annually – that would have been financed through debt as French firms continued to collect toll charges from motorists using the critical 175 km road on a public-private partnership (PPP) contract.

Treasury officials reckon that the Sh299 billion pay, which was structured during the era of President Uhuru Kenyatta, was untenable given the tight public finance, triggering the cancellation of the French deal in favour of Chinese contractors.

The French consortium, comprising Vinci Highways SAS, Meridian Infrastructure Africa Fund, and Vinci Concessions SAS, had inked a deal in September 2020 to build the highway and recover its investments over 30 years.

But it agreed with Kenya to pay the Sh299 billion in the first 13 years to help the French firms recoup their investments speedily.

From year 14, Kenya was also expected to cover the toll shortfall in the event that fewer cars use the highway, tilting the deal in favour of the consortium.

The Treasury reckons the French deal failed to align with fiscal consolidation objectives, which demands reducing the budget deficit and stabilising public debt, despite talks that aimed at restructuring the commercial project.

‘Significant macroeconomic developments during the 2020-2022 period including sustained global inflation, depreciation of the Kenya shilling, tightening fiscal space, and rising public debt service obligations materially affected the assumptions upon which the original project agreement had been developed, necessitating a reassessment of its long-term affordability and fiscal sustainability,’ Treasury Cabinet Secretary John Mbadi said in disclosures seen by the Business Daily.

‘The reassessment undertaken by the government established that the original project agreement no longer aligned with fiscal objectives necessary to support sustainable infrastructure financing.’

Kenya last year terminated the highway expansion deal with the French consortium and handed it to Chinese contractors, with National Social Security Fund (NSSF) getting a piece of it.

It paid off the consortium led by Vinci Highways Sh7.3 billion to avoid a costly legal battle in London.

The deal to turn the single-lane road into a multilane highway linking Nairobi to Kericho was signed in Paris in 2020 during a visit by then President Kenyatta.

Kenya’s decision to cancel the contract came after the government unsuccessfully sought to revisit the terms of the agreement, which it warned put the risk from insufficient traffic on the taxpayers.

The French consortium was awarded the contract on September 30, 2020.

However, the deal was cancelled by the Ruto administration even before the contractor commenced the works, ushering in Chinese contractors. The development came after Dr Ruto visited Beijing in April 2025.

Initially, there was a push to have Chinese contractors settle the Sh7.3 billion compensation bill and inherit the works done by the French contractors, like the feasibility fees. However, this was dropped during President Ruto’s visit to China, leaving the bill in the hands of Kenyan taxpayers.

The Treasury said earlier it pursued an out-of-court settlement to avoid a costly and protracted suit at the London Court of International Arbitration. Kenya was also fretful that without the payment, the French would block attempts to take away the contract-a move that would have marred the President’s Beijing tour in April 2025.

Besides the Sh299 billion service charge, Kenya was uncomfortable with the high toll fees. Motorists were to pay $6 (Sh780) to drive 175 kilometres in a small car and close to $50 (Sh6,500) for a truck to go the same distance under the French deal.

Under the current deal, a consortium of China Road and Bridge Corporation (CRBC) and the NSSF is building 81 kilometres from Nairobi to Gilgil via Naivasha and a 58 Kilometre stretch from Nairobi to Naivasha through Maai Mahiu.

Another Chinese firm – Shandong Hi-Speed Road and Bridge International Engineering (SDRBI)-will construct 94 kilometers from Gilgil to Mau Summit.

The projects were launched on November 28, 2025, and construction is currently ongoing.

The government will receive 60 percent of excess profits from the Rironi-Mau Summit toll road in a move aimed at limiting the potential for excessive earnings by the Chinese firm during the 30-year concession period.

Treasury documents show that the owners of the road will transfer to the State 60 percent of earnings above the agreed 16 percent of the internal rate of return (IRR) on equity.

Negotiations with the two Chinese firms also saw the exclusion of a minimum revenue guarantee (MRG), which would have required that the State to compensate the operators if toll collections fall below an agreed level.

This means that the project’s demand and revenue risks have been transferred to the private sector.

The NSSF will take a Sh9.59 billion stake in the consortium with CRBC on an ownership split of 40 percent and 60 percent.

The pair is projecting to make an annual dollar return of about 13 percent on their investment via user fees or toll charges.

They will fund their investment through a 25 percent equity injection of Sh23.97 billion and debt of Sh71.89 billion, with the NSSF contributing 40 percent of the equity component.

The profit share model marks a departure from the demand-risk model used for the Nairobi Expressway, where the Chinese operator absorbs losses if traffic volumes fall short of projections, but retains all excess revenue when usage exceeds expectations.

The Nairobi Expressway has not made a profit since its launch, with operational costs always exceeding toll revenues.

President Ruto is keen to see the project completed before the next General Election in 2027, viewing it as a key selling point to residents of the Rift Valley, western Kenya and Nyanza regions, where motorists often endure long traffic snarl-ups, especially during the festive season.

This project forms a critical part of both the Northern Corridor and the Trans-African Highway, serving as a vital transport artery that links East and Central African countries to the Port of Mombasa.

The highway plays a key role in supporting the movement of goods and services across the region, accommodating a substantial volume of heavy commercial traffic that is essential for regional trade and economic development.

Government and media relations have traditionally been tenuous; governments looking at the media as snoozers in affairs deemed good for the citizens while media holding governments accountable on public interest issues.

This is a normal professional thing that must be accepted and respected. Nothing personal.

Challenge has been, in our governments, everybody is a media and communication ”experts’ or has some beef with the media while a few journalists/editors have some personal scores with government to sort.

This has escalated the tensions between governments and the media, to a level that is very unhealthy and dangerous. Its now settling of personal scores, in most of the cases, by both the government and a few people in the media.

This is a big threat to not only freedom of expression, but a big economic threat to an industry that employs thousands and for citizens who depend on the media to access vital information on what the government is doing for them.

Oversighting government is a critical routine exercise that cannot be stopped or turned into personal wars-This oversight is done at all levels, including by public funded institutions such as Parliament, the Auditor General, Controller of Budget, EACC, DCI, Civil Society organisations, embassies, lending institutions, and the media.

Several reports by the institutions on government programmes exist, and corrective actions including arrests, indictments and punishments. To single out media as the only institution that must be punished for its watch dog is unfair.

It’s wrong to personalise this relationship between the government and the media-let the issue remains professional and respectful devoid of settling personal scores. Investors in the media sector are suffering, for the returns from the investments are reducing day by day, staff live in fear, while insurers have shunned the industry.

Governments in East Africa own media outlets especially the national broadcasters, in addition many members of Parliament including those in Government own media houses, and why they have never used this to influence public discussions and cry foul over a few privately owned media outlets remain baffling.

While the media has historically been viewed as being overly aggressive and insatiable in their plight for the latest and hottest news, their watchdog-type function is essential in a democratic society where people MUST know what their governments are doing.

The media has the capacity to hold governments accountable, forcing them to explain their actions and decisions, all of which affect the people they represent. As has been said again, any society that ascribes to democratic ideas, people should know all their options if they are to govern themselves and the media is a vehicle for the dissemination of such information.

The media plays a surveillance and watchdog role, disseminates information, entertains, educates and sensitizes the public to act.

The flow of information is important for the development of communities and the media facilitates this.

Without a wide array of information, people’s opinions and views would be limited and their impressions and conclusions of the world around them stunted. Journalists are in essence interpreters of information.

Governments in the East African region have always through speeches reminded us how they consider the media as partners in driving the development agenda and strive to promote a free environment in which the media can operate.

They commit not to allow our countries to slide back to the dark era of gagging the media, harassing of journalists, constraining media space and violation of media freedom that are fundamental to good governance.

Journalists on the other hand commit to remain professional and responsible in the reporting of our countries, making their main agenda, being among the key narrators of regions story.

As we move journalism and media practice from the adversarial engagement into the new realm of solution-based journalism, constructive journalism and development journalism, it’s possible that governments and the media relook at their relationship, from being always adversaries to partners without either compromising the independence and effectiveness of the other.

The media is an invaluable partner in communicating government development agenda, promote our core values, good governance and democracy on which a successful nation building is done.

Otherwise, the region’s agenda will continue being determined and shared by the international media and digital platforms where mostly the local story gets lost.

Strategic government communication, frequent proactive information disclosures especially around mega projects, public private partnerships and clear messaging are critical while professional use of editorial discretion and application of the request for information as guided under the Commission for the Administration of Justice- the Access to Information law is highly recommended for the media.

There is no option; public interest journalism requires investment into digging for information and courage from the media. Media cannot afford to manipulate information of spread misinformation and falsehoods.

Governments in the region have a responsibility to invest in the media through strengthening national public broadcasters, government owned websites and news agencies- which will relay government communication while at the same time creating a conducive working and business environment for private media to flourish.

Giving business to media, tax waivers on media equipment and establishment of media support funds are critical considerations to enable media, critical player in national development operate. This is important in supporting media viability, especially in raising professional and ethical standards in the media. Journalists need to be paid.

Even with the era of fast-evolving social media phenomenon for communication including for governments, traditional media is still strong especially outside urbans areas, integrated communication is the best approach. Lets have a human face and national interest in the media and government relations, for the country needs both.

Growing up in Kenya in the 20th century, Reddy Kilowatt, a cartoon character with a red, lightning-bolt body, was a familiar brand icon for the Kenya Power and Lighting Company (KPLC).

I did a little research and found that Reddy Kilowatt is a character used by many other electricity utilities. He was created by the American Ashton Collins of the Alabama Power Company and launched as a company symbol on March 11, 1926.

In 1934, the Philadelphia Electric Company became the first utility licensed to use the Reddy Kilowatt trade and service marks. Thereafter, over 200 electricity utilities worldwide used the icon under licence.

Fun facts aside, KPLC is, surprisingly, a trailblazer in the corporate governance space in Kenya. How, you ask, as you scramble to buy prepaid tokens when your phone battery is hovering at two percent and the beeping warning on your electricity meter has slowly turned into a mind-numbing screech?

Over the last few weeks, I have been commenting on the rollout of the Government Owned Enterprises (GOE) Act 2025, a piece of legislation whose objective is to bring world-class professionalism to the way state-owned corporations are managed in Kenya. In practical terms, it is intended to move public ownership away from a fragmented parastatal model and towards a more disciplined, transparent and commercially driven ownership framework.

At least two years before the GOE Act was assented to, KPLC began a governance improvement process to remove the majority shareholder’s involvement in the nomination of independent directors. In November 2023, the company held an Extraordinary General Meeting to make changes to its Articles of Association.

First, the Articles, which had provided for not less than seven and not more than ten directors, were amended to specifically provide that at least a third of those directors should be independent non-executive directors (INEDs).

Secondly, the amendments required that the board composition should fairly reflect the company’s shareholding structure. The key operative word here is “fairly”. Given that the Kenyan government’s shareholding stood at 50.1 percent, it became crystal clear what the board composition should reflect.

Thirdly, and more interestingly, the proposed amendments to the Articles of Association created two classes of ordinary shares to distinguish voting rights. Class A shares were held by anyone other than the National Treasury, while Class B shares were those held by the National Treasury.

Class A shareholders were entitled to elect four directors to the KPLC Board. Class B shareholders, or the government as it were, were entitled to appoint the rest of the Board. The stage was now set for an interesting Annual General Meeting (AGM) the following month.

Who would those independent directors be, given that they were supposed to be nominated by the minority shareholders?

Having been electrified by a bolt of new governance, the company embarked on a process to professionalise its board composition.

An Appointment of Directors Policy was adopted by the company, a simply written and easy-to-understand eight-page document that clearly set out the process for the who, the what and the how of building the KPLC Board. Most importantly, it was here that the new governance framework was embedded: the National Treasury would not be involved in the selection process for INEDs, thereby ensuring that they reflected professional skills and diversity.

The policy made it clear that at the AGM, director nominees from minority shareholders would be presented for election, while the appointment of the National Treasury nominees would only be noted.

Even though the policy provided for a clearly defined array of professional skills, an external independent adviser was appointed to conduct a skills assessment, identifying the expertise needed for electing INEDs.

The identified skills were engineering, finance, technology and governance. Minority shareholders were invited to submit their nominees.

Forty-eight candidates were nominated for consideration. A board committee, from which the government appointees were recused, reviewed the nominations and submitted the names and professional profiles of the final nominees to shareholders at the December 2023 AGM.

Elections were held without gnashing of teeth or tearing of sackcloth. The minority shareholders exercised their governance-given right to elect their preferred candidates, with zero interference by the majority shareholder from start to finish.

The result: a strong, professionally driven group of INEDs now sits alongside the National Treasury and Ministry of Energy appointees, the managing director and two government-appointed individual directors.

The level of transparency that KPLC demonstrated ahead of the enactment of the GOE Act is not only admirable, but also sets a very public precedent that other Nairobi Securities Exchange-listed GOEs cannot ignore.

The shambolic Kenya Re AGM held in June 2026 is a case in point. Perhaps they should dial *977# to report the governance blackout in their boardroom.

Will the Capital Markets Authority bell the cat on the new governance order currently envisaged by the GOE Act? We wait and see.