Cabinet approves sale of Kenya Pipeline shares

The Cabinet despatch sent to newsrooms Tuesday evening highlighted several landmark decisions by the Cabinet, as government moves to effect several changes.

Among the changes includes the green light for the reinstatement of Kenya Pipeline Company (KPC) into the privatization programme, which will see the multi-billion-shilling corporation partially go into private hands. This will now see a certain percentage of KPC’s shares listed at the Nairobi Securities Exchange (NSE).

According to the Cabinet documents, the privatization of KPC will enable "the private sector and industry experts to drive growth, efficiency, and innovation."

KPC, a strategic player in Kenya’s energy supply chain, has maintained a strong profitability record and holds significant asset value.

However, the Cabinet noted that the company has not yet reached its optimum performance and market value, largely due to bureaucratic constraints and public sector inefficiencies.

Bringing in private capital and professional expertise, the government says, is expected to inject new energy into the company, modernize operations, and position KPC as a regional logistics and energy powerhouse.

Besides the KPC, the Kenya Literature Bureau (KLB), Rivatex East Africa, the National Oil Corporation (NOC), and the New Kenya Cooperative Creameries (NKCC) are other entities set to undergo privatization in the near future.

The privatization of the Kenyatta International Convention Centre was blocked by the court citing public interest of the entity, with the court saying no meaningful public participation was done before the move.

Cabinet also approved the recommendations from the Presidential Taskforce on Religious Organizations, which seeks to introduce several changes.

Including the fresh registration of all religious organizations in Kenya, establishment of a Religious Affairs Commission, and strengthening umbrella faith organizations for coordination.

The report also calls for improved leadership standards, reforms to religious broadcasting, and civic education to promote tolerance and prevent extremism.

The proposed reforms, which were handed over to President William Ruto on June 30th last year, propose among other things, enacting a legal framework to govern religious organizations.