The operationalisation of Kenya’s National Infrastructure Fund (NIF) is set to transform how major development projects are financed, reducing reliance on taxpayers and government borrowing.
The Fund will focus on commercially viable and bankable projects, including airports, seaports, national highways and energy systems, by working with private-sector investors to develop sustainable financing solutions.
NIF’s founding Chief Executive Officer, Dr. James Mworia, has called on commercial banks, pension funds and collective investment schemes to explore opportunities offered by the Fund and structure investment assets capable of generating returns for investors.
The initiative follows the signing into law of the National Infrastructure Fund Act, No. 4 of 2026, by President William Ruto under the UDA administration. The inaugural Investment Policy Statement was also released alongside the legislation.
Section 19(1) of the Act empowers the NIF Board to establish Special Purpose Vehicles (SPVs) for specific infrastructure projects.
SPVs will provide a dedicated legal and financial structure for ring-fencing, funding and implementing individual mega-projects without directly placing the borrowing burden on the national treasury.
For a project to qualify as commercially viable, it should be capable of securing at least 60 percent non-recourse debt, with repayment sourced from the project’s own cash flows.
