William Ruto has signed the National Infrastructure Fund into law, describing it as one of the most significant initiatives in Kenya’s development history. Speaking in Nairobi, the president said the fund will mobilize domestic capital to reduce reliance on foreign financing and support large scale infrastructure projects. The first project to be financed under the new framework will be the expansion of Jomo Kenyatta International Airport, with about 20 billion Kenyan shillings expected from the fund and domestic institutional investors.
The initiative aims to raise more than 5 trillion shillings to address Kenya’s infrastructure financing gap. Planned investments include the generation of 10,000 megawatts of clean energy, construction of 50 mega dams and thousands of smaller dams, development of over 2,500 kilometres of dual carriageways, and expansion of the national road network.
The fund will also support strategic transport projects such as extending the Standard Gauge Railway Kenya from Naivasha to Malaba near the Uganda border and to Kisumu. Funding sources will include government allocations, private investment, privatisation proceeds, grants, and loans, with oversight provided by a professional governing board.
