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FRAMEWORK:  Doing business in the country will soon become easier after President Uhuru Kenyatta signed into law the Business Laws (Amendment) Bill 2019.

The new law has 43 clauses and amends 16 laws, many of which touch on business and workplace dynamics.

Kitui Central MP, Mulu Makali, who is also an economist, described it as a good law that will create a conducive environment for people to do business.

He described it as an omnibus law targeted at improving the country’s position in the World Bank’s Ease of Doing Business index. 

“When you look at the law, it is trying to ensure you can get most of the things you require to do business electronically, including electronic signatures and electronic seals,” Makali said.  

“It’s more of moving from manual to electronic, you can now register a company from wherever you are.

Implementation of that law will pave way for more companies being registered.

Where there are business conflicts, they will be resolved much faster,” he added. 

Vincent Kimosop, a public policy and governance expert, said the Act will help to build the confidence of investors and creditors in the country and also remove hurdles to starting a business.

“The insolvency Act will entrench client protection by giving them the right to request information from an insolvency practitioner in the event that a company has been placed under administration,” he added.

It will facilitate decision making and access to information so that make sound business decisions, Kimosop said.

Clearance certificates

“It seeks to abolish land rent and rate clearance certificates, meaning that  land registrars will not demand proof of payment for land rates in order to register transfer of property,” he added.

National Taxpayers Association described the amendments as a good move but called on the government to look into other factors hindering business such as the high cost of freight and the high cost of power.

The law is just one component of the cost of business but there are also other concerns such as cost of freight which is still expensive and the cost of power.

It should be looked at wholesomely,” said the association’s CEO, Irene Otieno. 

The 2020 Ease of Doing Business Index released by the World Bank last year, ranked Kenya position 56 out of 190 countries. This is five places better than the position 61 the country held in 2018 .