The Commission on Administrative Justice (CAJ) has directed the Kenya Ports Authority (KPA) Managing Director, Captain William Ruto, to make information about the privatisation process of the Mombasa and Lamu ports available to the public.
In a notice issued on Thursday, February 20, the Ombudsman urged KPA to disclose the information within the next 21 days.
"The Commission has ordered the Managing Director, Kenya Ports Authority (KPA), to facilitate access to information/documents relating to the privatisation of Mombasa," the notice read.
According to the Commission, this was necessitated by a report from two representatives of a human rights organisation who lamented that they could not access the information even though it was supposed to be public knowledge.
The organisation had sought information regarding four aspects of the privatisation process from the authority, including a Gazette Notice inviting the public and relevant stakeholders to share their views on the process.
They also requested minutes of any public meetings held, public participation attendance lists, and any feasibility study reports justifying the need for and benefits of privatisation to the country.
"The request was not processed within the statutory timelines provided in the Access to Information Act, 2016, pushing the organisation to seek the intervention of the Commission," part of the notice read.
Ultimately, the Managing Director has been urged to facilitate access to the requested information and records within the next 21 days.
In September 2023, KPA began the privatisation process of the ports, advertising tenders aimed at allowing private companies to run at least nine assets within the port.
The authority had advertised for bidders interested in the development and operation of port assets through Public-Private Partnership (PPP).
Plans for the privatisation of the ports were first mentioned in June 2023 and initially faced disapproval from President William Ruto. He later backed the leasing plans to reduce congestion at the port.
In the same year, the government proposed the privatisation of 11 more parastatals including the Kenyatta International Conventional Center (KICC), Kenya Pipeline Company, Kenya Literature Bureau (KLB), and National Oil Corporation (NOC) but the plans were unsuccessful when the High Court ruled the Privatisation Act 2023 unconstitutional on September 24, 2025.
