Kenya Removes 30% Local Shareholding Requirement In ICT Sector

The Kenyan Government has recently done away with the local shareholding requirement in the ICT sector that has been in place for over ten years. It is expected that this move will encourage the ease of doing business in the ICT sector and attract more foreign investment into the sector.

On 22 August 2023, the Ministry of Information, Communications, and the Digital Economy published in the Kenya Gazette an amendment to the National Information Communications and Technology Policy Guidelines, 2020 (the 2020 ICT Policy) which required companies to have at least 30% substantive Kenyan ownership, either corporate or individual, in order to be licensed to provide ICT services (the Equity Participation Rule). Prior to that, licensees in the ICT sector were required to have 20% local ownership.