This archive report was first published on 8 December 2019.
On December 8, 2019, President Uhuru Kenyatta signed into law the Kenya Roads Board (Amendment) Bill, 2019, at State House, Nairobi. The law will allow the government to seek an Sh800 billion infrastructure bond in four years to construct 10,000km of roads by 2022.
The new law will give the Kenya Roads Board powers to seek funds for road maintenance, development, and rehabilitation, as well as set aside funds for loan repayment. The board will also be required to submit its annual programme to the government six months before the beginning of the financial year.
According to the Transport Committee chair, David Pkosing, the bond is the only way to address the budget deficit in the roads sector and ensure the construction of roads to realise Jubilee's infrastructure agenda. The law will restructure the mandate and operations of the board and other agencies in the sector, including the Kenya Highways Authority (KeNHA), Kenya Rural Roads Authority (Kerra), and Kenya Urban Roads Authority (Kura).
The law outlines how funds will be used in construction and maintenance of roads, with at least 22 per cent of funds allocated to the Constituency Roads Fund Account for each of the 290 constituencies. Another 10 per cent of funds will be appropriated by the National Assembly for development and maintenance of link roads between constituencies.
The government will commit Sh10 billion from the Fuel Levy Fund each year to repay the bond, as spelt out in the law. Pkosing noted that the government plans to work on a further 1,200km of roads, translating to 7,300 kilometres at several levels of implementation.
