A majority of shops and offices remained closed yesterday in Nairobi and major towns in the country as anti-government protests resumed, leading to revenue losses for businesses and county governments.
In the Nairobi Central Business District (CBD), which was the epicentre of running battles between protesters and the police, the few businesses that opened their doors saw minimal sales as many people stayed at home.
Even roadside sellers and hawkers of fast-moving consumer goods such as food, electronics, clothes and other goods were nowhere to be seen.
Public service vehicle (PSV) operators were also forced to lower their fares, as they tried to woo the few commuters who were travelling to the CBD for work and other engagements.
In the Nairobi residential areas as well as the CBD, most PSVs were parked, meaning the operators lost the thousands of shillings that they collect to ferry passengers to and from the CBD daily.
The Gen Z youth-led protests erupted last month as public anger against the controversial Finance Bill, 2024 reached the boiling point. President William Ruto declined to sign the Bill into law in a bid to cool the protests.
He also dissolved his Cabinet last week, saying he had listened to the voices of Kenyans demanding drastic reforms, including measures to curb corruption and wasteful spending in government.
The latest round of protests appear to have been fuelled by public anger against how the police responded to last month’s protests, including killings, abductions and enforced disappearances of vocal voices supporting the demonstrations.
The magnitude of financial losses incurred by private businesses is unclear. But during last month’s protests, the Federation of Kenya Employers (FKE) -- a lobby for employers -- noted that the closure of businesses in Nairobi and other major towns not only affected the livelihoods of business owners and their employees, but also the economy.
“Businesses have not fully recovered from the effects of Covid-19 and the Finance Act 2023, which had a far-reaching impact on their operations. The current protests exacerbate these challenges, creating an environment of uncertainty and anxiety among employers, employees and Kenyans as a whole,” said FKE Executive Director Jacqueline Mugo.
The Kenya Association of Manufacturers (KAM) also termed the situation volatile, noting that many businesses had closed operations, but noted that for business owners, it was a balance of whether to lose business for a short period and achieve better outcomes in the long run.
“This is a tight balance because when this happens, many people will not carry out their duties. But again, since the conversation is about economic issues that affect businesses, it’s a balance of losing business today and what is to be achieved in due course, depending on the point from which different people are looking at it,” said Antony Mwangi, the KAM CEO.
Besides private businesses, the Nairobi County Government was one of the biggest losers in yesterday’s demonstrations. The county relies on individuals and businesses to raise its own revenue, which supplements its receipts from the national government.
The city collected Sh3.81 billion in own-source revenue in the six months to December 2023, which marked the first half of the financial year 2023/24.
This translates to a revenue collection of about Sh20.8 million daily, with parking fees being the county’s top own-source revenue stream. But with thousands of motorists staying away from the city centre, Nairobi’s parking revenue took a hit.
Parking fees topped the county’s revenue during the half-year period, with the city collecting Sh872.6 million from motorists.
Other revenue streams that are collected from businesses monthly were largely unaffected.
The county also reaps big from land rates, issuance of single business permits, income from rental houses, issuance of building permits, and billboards and adverts.
