Public-private partnerships (PPPs) were envisioned as Kenya’s strategic solution to bridge the infrastructure financing gap without exacerbating the national debt burden.
The enactment of the PPP Act in 2013, followed by its comprehensive overhaul in 2021, established a robust legal framework to attract private capital to essential sectors such as transportation, energy and housing.
Despite the initial fanfare and ambitious projections, the tangible outcomes have been underwhelming, with many projects stalling amidst bureaucratic inertia and misaligned interests.
Over a decade since the enactment of Kenya’s PPP framework, only five projects have come through with the Nairobi Expressway standing out as the sole landmark.
The project has delivered a significant impact on reducing travel time between Westlands and Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA).
It is undeniable that there remain persistent murmurs concerning aspects like price discovery, risk sharing, cost recovery and overall public value.
The PPP’s landscape has been marred by a series of high-profile projects that, despite initial enthusiasm, have faltered due to bureaucratic inertia, fiscal constraints and controversies.
The proposed Nairobi-Mombasa Expressway, initially awarded to US firm Bechtel, was suspended in 2019 after disagreements over financing models and concerns about Kenya’s rising debt levels.
Similarly, the Nairobi-Nakuru-Mau Summit Road project, involving a French consortium, was cancelled due to costly proposed toll and affordability concerns.
More recently, deals with India’s Adani Group to upgrade and manage Nairobi’s JKIA and construct high voltage power transmission lines under a 30-year deal, were also cancelled in the wake of legal challenges in the US. However, there is a ray of hope.
With the signing of a new deal with China, President William Ruto has set in motion the revival of the Mau Summit project under the PPP framework, reaffirming the road’s vital role in connecting Nairobi to the Western Kenya region.
This project meets the public interest threshold and serves as a stark reminder that Kenya must channel its energies toward high-impact, socially and economically transformative PPP projects.
For Kenya’s PPP agenda to regain momentum, institutional leadership and discipline must be the focus of attention.
The next phase requires not just better deals, but projects that must offer value for money, more transparency in the procurement of the deal and communication.
Private capital must be mobilised for projects that serve national priorities and public interest, not private interests posing as public benefit.
The first step is to drop the secrecy veils around the projects, which has led critics to reckon that they do not offer taxpayers value for money.
The openness will help strengthen public confidence in the projects as Kenya intensifies its search for private investors to build infrastructure.
The PPP Directorate must evolve beyond its traditional role as a transaction gatekeeper to become a proactive catalyst for national dialogue on the strategic integration of public and private capital.
The arrival of Eng Kefa Seda as Director General comes at a critical moment, presenting an opportunity for the directorate to take its rightful place in the legislative architecture.
Contracting authorities, for their part, must resist the urge to dump undercooked ideas into the PPP pipeline just to ease budgetary pressure.
Every proposed project must pass a strict test as laid down under the PPP Act 2021: Is it viable? Does it serve the public good? Does it align with Kenya’s long-term development goals?
The country must decisively steer clear of boutique ventures and briefcase schemes posturing as PPPs, often cooked up through the connivance of local racketeers and foreign opportunists.
These projects promise miracles but deliver little beyond private windfalls at public expense.
Crucially, the Judiciary must play its rightful role: upholding rights and accountability under Articles 10, 22, and 23 of the Constitution, while ensuring that development in the public interest is not derailed by abuse of the judicial process. It must see through the tactics of commercial activists who have weaponised public interest litigation to delay projects, extort, or frustrate infrastructure delivery.
Infrastructure-related disputes must be resolved promptly, within defined time-frames like election disputes. However, at the same time, genuine concerns must be addressed particularly where cost recovery mechanisms such as tolls or tariffs directly affect them.
For the PPP vision to materialise, we must strengthen the fundamentals: deliver economically impactful projects such as roads, hospitals and energy solutions like power generation and distribution, identify private partners through transparent processes, communicate project details openly and show clear value for money.
The increased use of PPPs to finance infrastructure projects is key to reducing the use of debt and taxes to build roads, airports, power plants and electricity transmission lines.
Public debt went up following years of increased borrowing. Under PPP deals, private financiers build roads and recoup their investments through avenues such as tolling.
The Treasury says 27 PPP projects valued at over Sh1 trillion are in the pipeline.
When the public is properly informed and sees real benefits, support will follow.
The writer is a partner, MMA Advocates LLP, masters' student in public policy and management, Strathmore University. Email: [email protected]
