The Kenyan government has reduced the cost of registering a company from KSh 50,000 to approximately KSh 11,000 as part of President William Ruto’s Bottom-up Economic Transformation Agenda (BETA Plan), in a move aimed at making it easier for entrepreneurs and small businesses to formalize their operations.
The significant fee reduction is expected to encourage more micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) to register their businesses, improve access to financial services, and stimulate economic growth.
The reform forms part of the government’s broader strategy to create a more business-friendly environment by lowering the cost of doing business and promoting entrepreneurship across the country.
In addition to reducing company registration costs, the government has undertaken several measures to improve access to finance for individuals and businesses.
Among the key initiatives is the removal of more than eight million Kenyans from negative listings with Credit Reference Bureaus (CRBs), enabling many borrowers to regain access to credit and participate more actively in the formal financial sector.
The government has also expanded financial inclusion through the Hustler Fund, which has so far disbursed nearly KSh 90 billion to more than 27 million beneficiaries. The fund provides affordable loans to individuals and small enterprises that often struggle to access financing through conventional banking institutions.
To further strengthen the country’s industrial sector, the government is re-engineering Kenya Industrial Estates (KIE), a state-owned agency that supports the growth of manufacturing and small-scale industries through financing, business development services, and industrial infrastructure.
The latest reforms are part of the BETA Plan, which prioritizes job creation, enterprise development, financial inclusion, and industrialization as key drivers of Kenya’s economic transformation.
Government officials say the measures are intended to empower entrepreneurs, strengthen the MSME sector, and accelerate sustainable economic growth by reducing barriers to business formation and expanding access to affordable financing.
