The National Treasury is setting up a fresh plan to help young people, women, disabled persons, and small enterprise owners secure government jobs and tenders.
Treasury Cabinet Secretary John Mbadi has called on the public to give input on a new set of draft rules. The main goal is to clean up how state contracts are handed out and make sure big companies stop stealing opportunities meant for smaller, disadvantaged groups.
A major headache the new framework tries to cure is “fronting.” This happens when wealthy business owners secretly use a youth or woman as a front to win reserved government tenders, taking the money while giving nothing back to the actual owner. To end this trickery, the new draft introduces stricter background checks, tighter registration rules, and harsh penalties for cheating.
The official notice outlines the purpose of the changes:
“The Draft Framework is intended to strengthen the implementation of preferences and reservations in public procurement and asset disposal, promote inclusive participation and expand opportunities for eligible persons, enterprises and groups.”
This effort ties into a pledge made by President William Ruto earlier this year to train 600,000 citizens on bidding for public tenders. It also aligns with the state’s move to shift all public purchasing to an online portal, ensuring every single contract can be tracked easily.
Treasury officials are asking everyday citizens and local business groups to suggest specific changes to the proposal.
“Members of the public, businesses, professional bodies, civil society organizations, development partners, public institutions and other stakeholders are invited to review the Draft Framework and submit their views, comments and recommendations,” the notice says, adding that public feedback will help ensure the document is “equitable, implementable, and fit for posterity.”
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