Government to Sell Part of Safaricom Stake to Raise KES149Billion

• Government to Sell Part of Safaricom Stake to Raise Sh149 Billion

The National Treasury has announced plans to sell a portion of its 34.9 percent stake in Safaricom by June 2026 as part of its broader privatization agenda aimed at raising Sh149 billion.

Treasury Cabinet Secretary John Mbadi indicates the government made the decision to help achieve revenue targets for the 2025/26 financial year, control public debt, and fund development projects under the Sh4 trillion national budget.

He further stated that Safaricom is the only company that can deliver the government cash it needs.

Safaricom, the biggest telecommunications firm in Kenya, made a net profit of Sh69.8 billion for the financial year that ended on March 31, 2025.

Its revenue grew by 11.2 percent to Sh388.7 billion driven by innovation and expansion into regional markets particularly into Ethiopia.

The Nairobi Securities Exchange (NSE) previously stated that reducing the government’s share in Safaricom to 25 percent would bring in approximately Sh150 billion.

NSE stated that this would go towards lessening reliance on the high cost of borrowing and easing the burden of the national debt.

The National Treasury can now proceed with the sale of state-owned enterprises without needing approval from parliament under the Privatisation Act, 2023.

The Treasury Cabinet Secretary John Mbadi stated that offloading part of the government’s stake in Safaricom could be the “big-ticket item” that helps Kenya meet its ambitious revenue targets before the close of the 2025/26 financial year.

The move comes as the State seeks alternative funding sources, having pledged not to introduce new taxes in the current fiscal plan.