The news
NAIROBI — Kenyan President William Ruto is under mounting pressure over a series of controversial proposals by an Indian conglomerate to modernize the country’s aging infrastructure.
The Adani Group, founded by billionaire Gautam Adani, wants to manage and operate the country’s largest airport — Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA) — under a 30-year lease. The proposal would see the conglomerate invest $1.85 billion to improve the airport’s facilities. Adani also presented a $725 million proposal to construct approximately 400 kilometers of high-voltage power lines.
The proposals have been publicly endorsed by senior officials and Ruto’s allies. The government has generally argued that with Kenya currently burdened by expensive debt repayments and citizens opposed to tax increases, public-private partnerships such as the one proposed by Adani offer a useful alternative. Ruto himself has approved PPPs as a way to ensure JKIA remains competitive in the region. But experts question whether taxpayers are getting value for money and criticize a perceived lack of transparency.
The airport proposal was the first announced earlier this month by a whistleblower at X, sparking widespread outrage. It also emerged that Adani’s private initiative proposal violated a recommendation to the government to launch an open bidding process for the airport upgrade project.
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A court in Nairobi last week temporarily stopped stopped the government from accepting the Adani proposal for JKIA. Civil society groups argued that the country had other ways to raise the $1.85 billion that Adani proposes to spend on improving taxiways and other facilities at the airport. The activists described the proposal as “irrational”. Lawyer Dudley Ochieng said in court documents that the Adani proposal was “unaffordable”, adding that it threatened job losses and exposed the public.
And Ketraco has struggled to explain its relationship with Adani and the status of its proposal. Energy Minister Opiyo Wandayi said on Monday that Adani Energy’s proposal was still being considered, even as he stressed that nearly $5 billion was needed over the next 20 years for a complete overhaul and expansion of Kenya’s electricity transmission infrastructure.
Martin’s vision
The mystery surrounding Adani’s proposals and negotiations with the government fueled the controversy. More open and participatory processes involving the public could have resolved many of the problems before they arose.
For example, airport workers went on strike last week over the Adani-JKIA proposal, fearing for their jobs if it were to pass. Some analysts also fear that a deal with Adani to upgrade transmission lines could lead to higher energy costs for Kenyans.
But ultimately it’s an economic question. How do you finance the development and upgrades of key infrastructure without taking on expensive debt or raising taxes? This led to a massive youth-led uprising this year, which left 60 people dead.
Anderson Njuki, a Nairobi-based economist, told Semafor Africa that the current government was likely to roll out “even more” public-private partnerships to finance major infrastructure projects. This, he said, was because there were few options, as debt repayments accounted for almost 70% of revenues. However, Njuki argued that improved transparency would be needed to avoid retaliation by the public and the courts.
Room for disagreement
Adani this week defended itself in response to a lawsuit that sought to block its proposed 30-year airport concession. The company said its proposal was still under consideration and maintained that due process had been followed. Adani further supported its proposal, saying that PPPs “provided the necessary capital injection to accelerate upgrades and modernize infrastructure.”
The view from India
Leaders of the Indian National Congress, India’s largest opposition party, have criticized Adani’s proposal to take over Kenya’s largest airport and its potential impact on India’s global reputation. They also raised questions so called ties between Adani and Prime Minister Narendra Modi. “The prime minister’s association with the Adani Group has contributed to the erosion of India’s strength and led to unprecedented setbacks on the global stage,” a party leader said.
