The Treasury has received a landmark report from a committee of experts tasked with exploring ways to mobilise domestic capital for Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs), marking a significant step towards strengthening Kenya’s infrastructure financing framework.
The report handover ceremony, presided over by Principal Secretary (PS) Chris Kiptoo, was the culmination of months of rigorous work by the committee, which was established in February this year. The experts were mandated to recommend strategic reforms across policy, legal, regulatory, and administrative areas to unlock long-term domestic capital for PPP projects.
Speaking during the event, PS Kiptoo emphasized the potential impact of the report. “This report gives us a clear roadmap to tap into the vast potential of our local financial ecosystem,” he said. He acknowledged that although Kenya has mobilised over Sh140.7 billion through PPPs since 2013, there remains significant untapped potential that the country can leverage to fast-track infrastructure development.
Central to the report is the proposal to establish the Public-Private Partnership Implementation Trust Fund (PPP-ITF). This fund is envisioned as a central vehicle to pool and deploy long-term institutional capital from pension and insurance funds toward PPP infrastructure projects. The trust fund aims to provide predictable returns to investors, thereby reducing the reliance on government guarantees that have traditionally underpinned many PPP projects.
Committee chairperson Hosea Kili described the proposed fund as a “paradigm shift” in infrastructure financing, highlighting its potential to align national development goals with the interests of local institutional investors, ensuring sustainability and shared growth.
Treasury’s PPP Director General, Kefa Seda, praised the report’s comprehensive nature, noting that it outlines the framework needed to support and operationalise the trust fund through both legislative and administrative measures.
Looking ahead, the Treasury will undertake a detailed review of the report over the next month and develop an action plan for implementing the committee’s recommendations. The event was attended by key stakeholders, including representatives from pension schemes, insurance firms, development partners, and senior government officials, underscoring the broad-based support for the initiative.
This report sets the stage for transformative reforms that could significantly boost Kenya’s infrastructure financing landscape by harnessing the power of domestic capital markets.
