African Development Bank (AfDB) President Akinwumi Ayodeji Adesina has called on Kenya and the wider continent to anchor development on the rule of law, describing it as the foundation of prosperity, trust, and justice.

Speaking at the Law Society of Kenya (LSK) Annual Conference 2025 in Nairobi, Adesina challenged legal practitioners to safeguard constitutionalism, accountability, and fairness in governance.

“In this hall today sit the guardians of Kenya’s promise and the stewards of Africa’s destiny: courts and contracts, public finance and governance, digital trust, environmental and social governance, justice and economic development,” he said.

Call to action

His remarks were shared by LSK President Faith Odhiambo, who termed the speech “an apt call to action” for lawyers, judges, arbitrators, and development partners attending the forum.

Adesina underscored the urgent need to strengthen judicial systems, ensure transparency in public finance, and embrace technology in court processes to build trust and efficiency. He stressed that high ethical standards and infrastructure reforms remain critical in boosting investor confidence.

“We must collectively strengthen constitutionalism, insist on accountability in the use of public funds, and strengthen the legal system and the judiciary,” he said.

“Africa will attract the capital it needs. Businesses will flourish in trust. Justice will cease to be a privilege and become a right delivered to all.”

His call comes against the backdrop of rising concerns over Kenya’s governance trajectory under President William Ruto. Civil society organisations issued a damning midterm assessment of his administration, warning that the country is sliding into authoritarianism.

The report painted a bleak picture of deteriorating governance, rampant human rights violations, economic despair, and systemic repression. Police brutality, extrajudicial killings, media censorship, and political intolerance have intensified. CIVICUS downgraded Kenya’s civic space from obstructed to repressed in 2024.

Between January and September 2023, the Independent Medico-Legal Unit documented 228 cases of police torture and 67 extrajudicial killings. The Kenya National Commission on Human Rights further recorded 63 deaths and more than 600 injuries during Gen Z protests. At least 26 Kenyans remain missing, allegedly abducted by security forces.

Civil groups also decried the collapse of social services, with universities underfunded and the health sector in chaos following the messy transition from NHIF to the Social Health Authority. Femicide cases are rising sharply, with 579 women killed in 2024 alone.

Adesina stressed that the rule of law is the lifeline of prosperity that must be realised by every country.