The Opposition should not enter 2027 with a catalogue of complaints. It should present an economic contract every Kenyan can scrutinise: nearly doubling GDP per capita without new taxes in five years.
That means expanding national income, creating better-paying jobs and improving purchasing power. To be credible, the Opposition must explain what it will do, how it will finance it and how each intervention will create wealth.
First, make Kenya cashless. Cash imposes costs through theft, handling and limited access to finance. Traders in Marikiti and farmers in Githunguri should transact securely, save formally and build financial histories. The Opposition should propose a five-year transition, investing Sh5 billion annually from Universal Service Fund resources in connectivity, Sh10 billion in incentives for low-value digital transactions and Sh2 billion in financial literacy. All should be independently audited, with competition safeguards.
Second, guarantee free day secondary education. Fees burden households and interrupt learning. About 2.6 million day scholars paying Sh13,000 annually represent a Sh33.8 billion household burden. The Opposition should consolidate Sh21.4 billion in NG-CDF bursaries and Sh12 billion in county bursaries into a transparent, needs-based capitation arrangement, subject to verification of allocations and beneficiaries. The remaining Sh400 million should be explicitly budgeted. Education is not social spending; it is an investment in future workforce productivity.
Third, urbanise trading centres. Kenya must urbanise to prosper. The Opposition should target five kilometres of paved roads per ward annually at Sh15 million per kilometre, plus Sh5 million for a borehole or dispensary. Across 1,450 wards, this amounts to Sh108.75 billion for roads and Sh7.25 billion for facilities: Sh116 billion annually. Funding should come from reprioritising urban and rural road allocations, eligible Road Maintenance Levy resources and cuts to non-essential expenditure. Projects should employ local youth, use transparent procurement and include maintenance budgets.
Fourth, make manufacturing the centrepiece. Kenya must stop exporting raw produce and importing finished products. Counties should identify public land for agro-processing zones linked to local production. The Opposition should propose competitive tax incentives tied to verifiable farmer-supply agreements, value addition and measurable employment and export targets. It should establish a Sh50 billion revolving VAT refund facility to address legitimate delays, with strict eligibility controls and transparent reporting. Manufacturers should have structured consultation channels with KRA, KEBS and NEMA. Factories should create markets for farmers, process more Kenyan produce and generate better-paying jobs.
Fifth, dismantle unnecessary regulatory bureaucracy. A bakery should not face overlapping licences from multiple agencies without clear public-interest justification. Regulators should focus on standards, inspections and enforcement, while accredited professionals undertake certification under independent supervision. Licensing should be consolidated into predictable, time-bound processes to reduce compliance costs, discourage bribery and ease formal business ownership.
Sixth, commercialise agriculture according to county potential. Policy should recognise differences in climate, soils, water and market access. Makueni can deepen its mango chain, avocado-growing areas can expand processing, and suitable arid areas can develop drought-adapted oilseeds. The Opposition should establish a Sh35 billion productivity programme for quality seedlings, extension services and ward aggregation centres. Existing fertiliser subsidies should be reviewed and rationalised, not indiscriminately abolished. Farmers need reliable markets, storage, processing and finance.
Seventh, make foreign travel serve the economy. Official missions should have measurable commercial objectives. Where appropriate, delegations should include manufacturers, exporters and investors, with scheduled business-to-business engagements. Government should publish post-trip reports identifying investment leads, trade agreements and commercial outcomes.
Eighth, build sovereign digital capacity. Kenya should develop the capacity to design, own and maintain critical government software. Instead of depending perpetually on expensive proprietary systems, government should recruit Kenyan engineers, strengthen local firms and adopt open standards where appropriate. A transparent audit of existing technology contracts should identify duplication and unnecessary expenditure.
Ninth, protect the poorest against catastrophic health costs. The Opposition should guarantee affordable coverage for 2.1 million extremely poor households, estimated at Sh25.2 billion annually at Sh12,000 per household. Financing should come from verified reallocations and sustainable revenue arrangements. The Social Health Authority should publish enrolment, claims and expenditure reports. No family should sell productive assets for essential treatment.
These proposals must be supported by a transparent five-year fiscal framework, with annual ceilings, identified funding sources and independently audited indicators. Growth projections should be treated as targets, not guarantees.
The ambition should be growth towards eight-to-10 per cent, supported by manufacturing, agricultural productivity, infrastructure and innovation.
The Opposition must publish the assumptions behind GDP and per-capita projections and explain how benefits will translate into employment, wages and purchasing power. This should be the Opposition’s offer: not more taxation, borrowing or slogans, but a fundamental reorganisation of public spending around productivity and opportunity.
Dr Irungu Kang’ata, PhD in Law, UoN, is the Governor of Murang’a County. Email: [email protected] .
