Cabinet has approved the divestiture of the state’s shareholding in six listed firms on the Nairobi Securities Exchange (NSE), including its shareholding in the bourse itself.
- •The companies include East African Portland Cement Limited (PORT) with Government stake of 25.3% and NSSF stake of 27%, Nairobi Securities Exchange (NSE) 3.36%, and Housing Finance Company of Kenya (HFCK) 2.41%.
- •The others are Stanbic Holdings (SBIC) 1.1%, Liberty Kenya Holdings (LBTY) 0.9% and Eveready East Africa (EVRD) 17.2%.
- •In 2023 the government invited the public to submit comments on the privatization of eleven state-owned companies.
“The divestiture in the six companies, through the sale of shares at the Nairobi Securities Exchange, will optimize the contributions of these investments in the realization of our national development aspirations,” a statement from Cabinet read.
In the Tuesday meeting, the cabinet said that the reforms were aimed at fostering a sustained turnaround of the economy with focus on management and governance of state corporations. In addition to the direct revenue from the divesting from the companies, privatisation plans are often meant to free companies to operate as private entities.
Big names in the privatisation plan include Kenya Pipeline Company, New Kenya Cooperative Creameries (NKCC), Kenyatta International Convention Center (KICC), National Oil Corporation, Kenya Seed Company, The Kenya Literature Bureau (KLB), Mwea Rice Mills (MRM), Western Kenya Rice Mills, Numerical Machining Complex, Vehicle Manufacturers Limited (KVM), and Rivatex East Africa (REAL).