Nairobi: The Directorate of Public-Private Partnerships (PPP), housed within the National Treasury and Economic Planning, has initiated public participation forums to foster community engagement, transparency, and stakeholder involvement in its activities. These forums aim to provide a platform for citizens and stakeholders to review the legal instruments and express their views before finalizing them.
According to Kenya News Agency, the PPP Directorate serves as the technical arm of the PPP Committee at the National Treasury, tasked with facilitating, structuring, and managing infrastructure and development projects between public and private sectors. Director General (DG) of the PPP, Eng. Kefa Seda, emphasized that the nationwide public participation forums are underway to review the PPP legal framework. These consultative sessions, running from July 13 to July 29, 2026, offer citizens and stakeholders a chance to assess proposed amendments intended to streamline project procurement, enhance transparency, and clarify the roles of county governments in PPP investments.
The public consultations focus on the draft PPP (Amendment) Bill, 2026, and related management regulations. Eng. Seda reiterated the government’s commitment to addressing Kenya’s significant infrastructure deficit through stronger collaboration with the private sector under the PPP initiatives. He highlighted the objective of these public forums as not only fulfilling constitutional requirements but also providing an opportunity for citizens and stakeholders to evaluate the PPP legal instruments and contribute their opinions before they are finalized and submitted to Parliament.
Speaking at the Kenya School of Government (KSG) Mombasa campus during a stakeholder and public participation forum, Eng. Seda encouraged citizens to participate actively. The Mombasa forum saw attendance from public and private sector stakeholders across Mombasa, Kilifi, Lamu, and Tana River counties. A significant PPP project in the coastal region is the Sh. 12.5 billion Galana-Kulalu Food Security project, Kenya’s largest irrigation-based agricultural scheme, spanning over 20,000 acres in Kilifi and Tana River counties.
Eng. Seda urged citizens to attend the forums and share their views to help shape the PPP legal and regulatory framework. He stated that PPPs are crucial for funding large projects, alleviating fiscal pressure on national budgets while leveraging private sector expertise and efficiency. By transferring financial and operational risks to private entities, governments can deliver essential infrastructure like highways and energy grids more swiftly and efficiently.
Globally, governments and development institutions extensively utilize the PPP model to bridge infrastructure funding gaps. Eng. Seda affirmed that the PPP funding model remains a viable option to address the country’s budgetary constraints, highlighting the importance of collaboration between public and private sector players in advancing quality infrastructure development and driving sustainable economic growth. Typically, in PPP arrangements, the government and a private partner engage in long-term contracts to finance public assets crucial for infrastructure development.
Eng. Seda emphasized that the infrastructure sector demands substantial resources and capital, which the government alone cannot manage due to the severe pressure on national budgets and public debt. The PPP model allows the government to harness private sector expertise and resources while minimizing financial risks and keeping costs down.
