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Ruto: Rironi–Mau Summit road dualling will not add to Kenya’s debt
18th August, 2025 01:18 PM
President William Ruto has clarified that the government is set to build the Rironi-Mau Summit under the Public-Private Partnership, unlike other roads that were previously fully funded by the government.
According to the Head of State, the Rironi-Mau Summit and the upcoming Naivasha–Kisumu–Malaba railway will both be constructed under a Public-Private Partnership (PPP) model to avoid worsening Kenya’s national debt burden.
Ruto made his remarks on Monday, August 18, 2025, during the ODM and Kenya Kwanza talks held in Karen, Nairobi.
“We are not going to be spending any debt money from the government to construct the Rironi Mau Summit; the road is going to be built on Private private-public partnership,” Ruto said.
Why PPP?
Ruto revealed that one of the major reasons his government is working on a Private Public Partnership is to avoid burdening the country with debts like they did with previous projects.
“We will be starting the construction of the road all the way to Mau Summit. We will not spend debt money; we will be constructing the Naivasha-Kisumu-Malaba railway. We will not be spending any debt money like we did with the first section of the railway project,” Ruto said.
On his part, the President emphasised that debt-funded infrastructure had previously strained the country’s economy and development plans, National debt has the potential to threaten our development, he said, crediting his administration alongside CS John Mbadi for seeking alternative funding sources.
“National debt has the potential to threaten our development. Mbadi and I have gone out of our way to look for alternative sources of funding so that we do not always have to borrow,” Ruto said.
Similarly, he added that his administration is now crafting mechanisms to deliver public goods and infrastructure without relying on traditional borrowing, signalling a shift in how major national projects will be financed going forward
“We are crafting alternative ways that we can craft alternative mechanisms on Public infrastructure of public goods without necessarily endangering the country with national debt,” Ruto said.
His remarks follow Deputy President Kithure Kindiki’s affirmation of the government’s plan to hasten dualling of the Rironi-Mau Summit Highway, saying construction works to commence before the end of August 2025.
Speaking during Nakuru Town East Economic Empowerment, the DP said its completion will be a game-changer in easing transport between Nairobi and the Western parts of the country.
“The construction of the Rironi-Mau Summit Highway beginning this August will be a game-changer in the movement of people and transportation of goods in a safer, faster and effective way, accelerating the socio-economic transformation of the Rift Valley, Western and Nyanza Regions and connecting Kenya to the East African Community,” he said.
