Kenyans continues to bear the brunt of a slowing economy as investors’ exodus gains momentum.

Currently, 55 employees of Eat N’ Go, a franchisee of Domino’s Pizza, Cold Stone Creamery, and Pinkberry Yoghurt in Nigeria are set to face the door as the company announces plans to restructure in a bid to keep afloat with the current economic hurdles.

In an internal memo, the company notified its employees that the affected group would be performing their last tasks at the company towards the end of this month with a consultation meeting geared towards their smooth transition set to be held in the month.

Sustaining profitability
“An assessment of the staffing requirements has revealed that the company has an excess of 55 employees. In order for the company to work towards attaining and sustaining profitability and sustainability of the business in the long run, the management has regrettably made the difficult conclusion that is necessary to downsize its labour force,” it said.

“It has therefore been decided that 55 employees will regretfully have to be declared redundant with their last day of work to be 28 February 2025,” the memo reads in part.

The company cited a decline in revenue, profitability and bloated payroll as the main factors for this decision mirroring the severe impact of the high tax regime.

Consequently, the number of unemployed Kenyans continues to swell despite the Kenya Kwanza administration pledging to create more employment opportunities as part of the plan to turnaround the economy.

This continues to reverse the 1 per cent employment growth recorded in 2023 that had been reported by the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (KNBS).

Prior to this announcement, East and Central Africa’s oldest and largest bus, track and coach body manufacturing company Labh Singh Harnam Singh limited, saw its operations halt following after being placed under receivership for failing to settle its accrued liabilities, meaning more Job losses.

A notice directed to parties that have claims against the company and other stakeholders noted, “The powers of the directors in terms of dealing with the company’s assets are ceased. Any party having a claim against the company shall submit the claim in writing with relevant supporting b documents to the joint administration.”

Similarly, CMC motors group last month announced a gradual exit from the east African market citing market challenges, including economic pressures, currency depreciation, and rising operational costs.

The Export Processing Zones (EPZs), a critical pillar of Kenya’s industrial strategy, also recorded worrying trends with employment opportunities and domestic sales dropping by 8.8 and 34 per cent.

Companies that exited the Kenyan business markets, as a result of the country’s tough business operating environment include Nestle, which shifted to other regions due to substantial tax liabilities and better opportunities in other parts.

Procter & Gamble which scaled down and transitioned to import model and Mobius motors, which halted operations due to high operational costs and low demand, among other companies.