By Argwings Owiti
Kenya reached a major infrastructure financing milestone in the 2024/25 financial year, with the Public Private Partnership (PPP) programme attracting KES 17.7 billion in new private investment in just twelve months. This increased the total private capital mobilized since the PPP framework was launched in 2013 to approximately KES 145 billion, according to the Fourth Annual Report on the State of PPPs in Kenya.
The numbers confirm what has been quietly unfolding over the past decade: PPPs are no longer a side experiment in Kenya’s development strategy. They have become one of the country’s most important channels for financing infrastructure.
Through PPPs, roads, power plants, housing projects and food production, that might otherwise be put on hold for many years awaiting government funding are now being built and operated using private capital, backed by long-term contracts with the government.
The Annual Report shows that the KES 17.7 billion did not come from a single mega-project or sector but from two key sectors – energy through geothermal and agriculture through food security – driven by the Orpower 22 Menengai Geothermal Power Plant and the Galana Kulalu Food Security Project, respectively. This indicates that Kenya’s PPP programme is no longer confined to a single sector but is steadily maturing into a diversified, multi-sector investment platform.
This progress did not happen by accident. It is the result of years of institutional reform. The PPP Act of 2021, which replaced the precursor Act of 2013, introduced clearer approval procedures, stronger risk management, and tighter oversight. By FY 2024/25, these reforms had made the project pipeline more predictable and improved investor confidence. Deals are reaching financial close, not because risks no longer exist, but because they are now better understood, properly priced, and more appropriately allocated.
The cumulative KES 145 billion in private capital is particularly significant given Kenya’s substantial infrastructure needs. Unlike traditional public procurement, which relies heavily on upfront budget funding or government borrowing, PPPs enable infrastructure to be built immediately while compensating the private partner over time based on performance, easing pressure on public finances and promoting higher standards of construction and maintenance.
The latest figures also reflect growing confidence in Kenya’s PPP market, with the successful Galana Kulalu and Orpower transactions showing that investors are increasingly willing to commit long-term finance to the country’s infrastructure. Such finance flows only to countries with strong institutions, enforceable contracts, and stable policy frameworks, and the KES 17.7 billion committed in a single year underscores Kenya’s credibility as a long-term investment destination.
Building on this momentum, the government is targeting at least KES 80 billion in private investment through PPPs in the current financial year, with the project pipeline expanded to 40 projects, including 10 under implementation and 30 at various stages of the PPP project cycle.
