President William Ruto on Thursday used his 62nd Jamhuri Day address to outline an ambitious roadmap aimed at transforming Kenya into a first-world economy, anchoring the vision on large-scale infrastructure, export-led growth, energy expansion and deep structural reforms.
Speaking at Nyayo National Stadium during the national celebrations, President Ruto said Kenya now stands at a historic crossroads similar to that once faced by countries such as South Korea, Singapore and Malaysia, which deliberately engineered their rise into advanced economies.
“They stood where we stand today, with limited resources and modest means, but with enormous courage, determination and ambition,” President Ruto said, adding that prosperity “was not handed to them; they reached for it.”
KSh5 Trillion First-World Roadmap
At the centre of the vision is a KSh5 trillion national economic transformation roadmap, which the President said is designed to secure Kenya’s “full economic freedom” beyond political independence and constitutional democracy.
The plan is anchored on three core pillars: modern transport and logistics infrastructure, a shift to a net-export economy, and massive energy expansion to support industrialisation.
“No nation ever prospered on poor roads, inefficient ports or congested airports,” Ruto said, noting that productivity and competitiveness depend on efficient movement of people, goods and services.
Massive Infrastructure
The President announced that Kenya has identified 2,500 kilometres of highways for dualing and 28,000 kilometres of roads for tarmacking to better link farms to factories, towns to cities and Kenya to regional markets.
He cited the recently launched Nairobi–Nakuru–Mau Summit and Nairobi–Maai Mahiu–Naivasha roads, a 233-kilometre multi-lane dual carriageway project valued at over KSh180 billion and being delivered through a Public–Private Partnership (PPP) model.
Further plans include extending the Standard Gauge Railway from Naivasha to Malaba starting February 2026, modernising Jomo Kenyatta International Airport, upgrading regional airports, and commercialising the ports of Mombasa and Lamu through long-term concessions.
Ruto said Kenya must decisively move away from heavy import dependence, noting that the country spends nearly KSh500 billion annually importing agricultural products.
To address food insecurity and support agro-industrialisation, the government plans to roll out an ambitious irrigation programme involving 50 mega dams, 200 mini dams and more than 1,000 micro dams, bringing an additional 2.5 million acres under irrigation.
“Large-scale modern irrigation is the only viable path,” the President said, adding that the programme will anchor Kenya’s transition into a net-exporting economy.
Energy, Ruto said, remains the lifeblood of a modern economy. While Kenya’s installed capacity stands at 3,300 megawatts, firm capacity is only about 2,300 megawatts due to intermittency in wind and solar power.
To meet growing demand from manufacturing, agro-processing, digital infrastructure and emerging technologies, the government plans to generate at least 10,000 megawatts of new energy over the next seven years, tapping geothermal, hydro, wind, solar and nuclear resources.
“To modernise our economy and compete globally, we must and will scale up energy generation exponentially,” he said.
Acknowledging fiscal constraints, President Ruto said the government would rely on innovative financing rather than excessive borrowing or taxation.
He pointed to the recently enacted Government-Owned Enterprises Act, which he described as the most far-reaching reform of parastatals since independence, aimed at ending patronage and professionalising state corporations.
The government is also finalising the National Infrastructure Fund to ring-fence privatisation proceeds exclusively for infrastructure development and crowd in long-term private capital.
“For every shilling in the Fund, we will attract ten more shillings from investors,” Ruto said.
In addition, Cabinet is expected to approve a Sovereign Wealth Fund policy anchored on inter-generational equity, as provided for under Article 201 of the Constitution.
The President said recent reforms have stabilised the economy, citing a drop in inflation from 9.6 per cent in 2022 to 4.6 per cent, a stable shilling at about KSh129 to the dollar, and foreign exchange reserves exceeding $12 billion — the highest in Kenya’s history.
Kenya’s economy, he said, is now the sixth largest in Africa.
Ruto cautioned that infrastructure and capital alone cannot deliver economic freedom without strong national values.
“Corruption is not merely theft of money; it is the theft of hope, opportunity and destiny,” he said, calling for a renewal of integrity, patriotism and national unity.
He emphasised that peace, security and human capital development remain non-negotiable enablers of the first-world vision.
A Generational Assignment
Framing the agenda as a generational duty, the President said the task before the current leadership is to complete the journey from political independence to economic independence.
“Let it be said of our generation that when Kenya stood at the edge of possibility, we chose courage over comfort, action over excuse, and unity over division,” he said.
President Ruto concluded by urging Kenyans to rally behind the vision, saying the country is ready to “step up, from the bottom up, charging forward full-steam to economic freedom.”
Read: Ruto Launches KSh170 Billion Nairobi–Nakuru–Mau Summit and Nairobi–Maai Mahiu–Naivasha Roads
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