National Assembly to resume public participation on Safaricom divestiture
By Mabonga Makhanu, February 2, 2026The National Assembly has announced the resumption of public participation on the proposed partial divestiture of the Government of Kenya’s shareholding in Safaricom PLC.
The exercise will be conducted jointly by the Departmental Committee on Finance and National Planning and the Select Committee on Public Debt and Privatisation, following the end of a parliamentary recess. The public engagements relate to Sessional Paper No. 3 on the proposed divestiture of government shares in the telecommunications firm.
“Do you wish to have a say on the proposed partial divestiture of the Government of Kenya’s shareholding in Safaricom PLC? After a short hiatus, the Joint Sitting of the Departmental Committee on Finance and National Planning, and the Select Committee on Public Debt and Privatisation are set to resume public engagements on Sessional Paper No. 3 on the proposed partial divestiture of the Government of Kenya’s shareholding in the telco.
According to the notice, the Joint Committee is set to begin collecting views from members of the public starting on Tuesday, January 2, 2025.
The exercise will initially take place in Nairobi, Mandera, Nyandarua, and Machakos counties before being rolled out to other regions.
The public participation process is scheduled to run until February 14, 2026, and will cover a total of 30 counties across the country. Members of the public are expected to present their views when the Committee visits their respective counties, in line with the attached schedule.
“Tomorrow, the Joint Committee will be collating views from the members of the public in Nairobi, Mandera, Nyandarua and Machakos counties. The exercise is scheduled to run from tomorrow through February 14, 2026, across 30 counties. See the attached schedule to plan how you can present your views on the matter when the Committee visits your county.”
How to submit proposals
In addition to physical submissions, the National Assembly has provided an option for members of the public to submit their views electronically through a designated Quick Response (QR) code.
The proposed divestiture forms part of ongoing discussions on public debt management and privatisation of state assets, with Parliament seeking public input before making any final determinations.