This archive report was first published on 21 December 2019.
On December 20, 2019, human rights activists in Mombasa and Nairobi called on the government to disclose all information regarding the Standard Gauge Railway (SGR) contracts.
According to the activists, the government has signed numerous deals in secrecy with foreign companies, and Kenyans need to be informed about the agreements as they will ultimately finance these projects.
The groups, including Katiba Institute, Muslims for Human Rights (Muhuri), and International Commission of Jurists (ICJ)-Kenya, want the state to provide all annexes and documents on SGR contracts within 21 days.
They also demand that the information on the Building Bridges Initiative (BBI) and Building Bridges to Unity Advisory expenditure be made public within the same timeframe.
Prof Yash Pal Ghai, director and chairman of Katiba Institute board, Khelef Khalifa of Muhuri, and Kelvin Mogeni of ICJ-Kenya accused the government of keeping secret the SGR contracts and expenditure on the BBI process.
Speaking in Mombasa, Mr Khalifa stated that it was unrealistic for over a billion shillings to be used per month to run and maintain the SGR.
