Kenya's Ruto signs a tax-light budget a year after the Gen Z revolt
A year after deadly anti-tax protests, Nairobi opted for a growth-first Finance Act with no major new levies and no tax on mobile-money transfers.
President William Ruto has signed Kenya’s Finance Act 2026 into law, marking a deliberate retreat from aggressive taxation after the 2024 Gen Z protests reshaped the country’s fiscal politics. The new framework leans on administration and compliance rather than new charges, and the Treasury has confirmed it does not tax M-Pesa transfers, informal retail or locally made essentials. Anchoring the Sh4.84-trillion budget, the law is widely read as an attempt to rebuild confidence between government, taxpayers and investors ahead of the 2027 election.
Source: Daily Nation; Capital FM Kenya; Kenyans.co.ke (2026).