This comes as regulators and development partners intensify outreach to micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) to improve awareness. The government is ramping up efforts to support small businesses through a fresh policy push aimed at easing access to finance, boosting competitiveness and bringing more informal enterprises into the formal economy.
This comes as regulators and development partners intensify outreach to micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) to improve awareness and uptake of existing support frameworks, amid concerns that many firms remain locked out of credit and structured markets.
The Micro and Small Enterprises Authority (MSEA), working with Dutch development organisation SNV Netherlands Development Organisation, has been holding a series of business forums across key counties to bridge the gap between policy design and implementation.
“We continue to support MSMEs through policies that promote business formalisation and targeted capacity-building initiatives,” said MSEA Senior Assistant Director Tabitha Gicheru “our investment in Jua Kali worksites and Constituency Industrial Development Centres underscores our commitment to providing affordable workspaces for MSMEs to grow.” The latest forum, held in Nakuru, brought together more than 100 small businesses in the leather and textile value chains, alongside representatives from tax authorities, business associations and county governments.
These engagements are part of a broader government strategy to strengthen the MSME ecosystem, which accounts for the bulk of employment in Kenya but continues to face structural barriers including limited financing, informality and weak market linkages. At the centre of the discussions is the proposed MSME Amendment Bill 2025, which seeks to overhaul the policy framework governing small businesses.
The draft law is expected to introduce measures to expand access to affordable credit, improve market access and create incentives for informal enterprises to formalise. Formalisation has emerged as a key policy priority, with authorities arguing that bringing more businesses into the formal fold would widen the tax base, improve access to government support programmes and enhance enterprise sustainability.
MSEA officials say many small businesses remain unaware of existing financing and capacity-building programmes, limiting their ability to scale. Current initiatives include government-backed youth funding schemes and enterprise support programmes targeting job creation and industrial growth.
The authority is also investing in physical infrastructure such as Jua Kali worksites and Constituency Industrial Development Centres to provide affordable workspaces for small manufacturers.