President Ruto Addresses Nation after holding fuel crisis meeting with Public Sector Stakeholders

Added: 2026-05-22

[00:00:00]After extensive consultations with stakeholders across the transport sector, a number of critical concerns and proposals were raised regarding livelihoods, operations, and sustainability of the industry.

[00:00:16]Consequently, the government has agreed on the following measures.

[00:00:23]The Ministry of Transport will engage financial institutions and the banking sector to provide a platform for transport operators to address the financial challenges arising from the current crisis, including the possibility of temporary relief on lending terms within the sector.

[00:00:48]Many of the good people standing behind me have vehicles, transport vehicles on loan from some of the financial institutions.

[00:01:04]The government of Kenya through the ministry is going to engage those financial institutions so that we can seek some relief for our transport sector as we all face the crisis ahead of us.

[00:01:17]Number two, the Ministry of Transport will work together with Insurance Regulatory Authority to engage stakeholders and address concerns relating to insurance claims affecting public transport operators.

[00:01:36]There is a big issue about transport operators despite having insurance covers for their vehicles and passengers end up paying bills when accidents occur and insurance companies go scot-free.

[00:01:58]This is a concern we must address so that an insurance cover has to mean something when it is paid for by our transporters.

[00:02:10]I have further directed that an immediate review of both the Insurance Act and the Auctioneers Act be undertaken to conclude within the next 3 months in order to establish a more responsive and fair framework for players within the sector.

[00:02:30]The Ministry of Transport, through the National Transport and Safety Authority, will engage transport network companies and drivers operating under the digital taxi platforms with a view to immediately implementing regulations on a minimum taxi fare and revol- resolving the long-running disputes affecting the ride-hailing uh hailing sector.

[00:03:03]The people in that space sometimes work for 16 hours to be able to make ends meet.

[00:03:14]There is need for urgent regulations that have already been developed and I have instructed the Ministry to work with the stakeholders to make sure that those regulations are implemented uh so that we can streamline the whole uh digital taxi uh platform.

[00:03:35]Recognizing the important role of creativity and self-expression within our transport culture, I have also directed the NTSA to facilitate an enabling environment for matatu operators to continue utilizing artwork and graffiti on their vehicles in a manner that upholds safety and respect for other road users.

[00:04:01]The industry is telling me that they have been told they must remove all graffiti from their matatus.

[00:04:08]And I'm asking myself why.

[00:04:12]The government will continue engaging stakeholders across the transport sector to develop practical and sustainable solutions that protect livelihoods and support economic activity.

[00:04:28]I therefore ask all Kenyans to remain calm, patient, and united.

[00:04:35]Let us reject division, fear, and misinformation.

[00:04:42]While every citizen has a right to express their concerns, collectively, we must reject hooliganism and all forms of violence that lead to the loss of lives, property, disrupting livelihoods, and undermining our economy.

[00:05:04]Let us use fuel responsibly, support one another, and protect our economy during this period. I have directed that in the pricing cycle, next pricing cycle, we are going to further reduce the price of diesel by a further 10 shillings for the June-July cycle to help stabilize pump prices and provide additional relief to consumers.

[00:05:39]Thirdly, through the government-to-government fuel supply framework, we have secured guaranteed fuel supplies despite global supply chain disruptions ensuring uninterrupted fuel supply availability across the country.

[00:06:02]The arrangement has stabilized fuel pricing compared to the old spot market system where prices fluctuated sharply every month.

[00:06:14]Before the G to G arrangement was introduced in 2023 oil importers faced intense pressure to secure US dollars within short timelines driving rapid depreciation of the Kenyan shilling and threatening fuel supply stability.

[00:06:35]By easing pressure on foreign exchange demand and ensuring predictable supply terms the framework has protected the economy during the crisis as the one we have now.

[00:06:51]Without it the country's situation I tell you would be much worse.

[00:06:58]And I want you uh people to talk to oil marketers.

[00:07:05]They will explain to you the kind of situation that was there in 2022 when we had a crisis like the one we have.

[00:07:15]Without a guaranteed supply without the framework we have built there would be a major crisis of foreign currency and there would be a major crisis of supply.

[00:07:33]The G to G arrangement has guaranteed supply even when we have disruptions and has also made it possible for us to pay on terms that does not put pressure on our dollar reserves.

[00:07:50]I know there are those who are trying to turn this global crisis into politics.

[00:07:56]People seeking to exploit public pain for political gain.

[00:08:02]Making reckless claims and pretending there are easy options.

[00:08:08]But leadership requires honesty, not political opportunism or playing populist politics.

[00:08:17]The reality is that no country can completely escape the global oil shock of this magnitude.

[00:08:26]Even advanced economies with far greater financial resources than Kenya are facing similar challenges.

[00:08:35]There are those asking government to remove all taxes and levies on fuel immediately.

[00:08:43]But we must ask ourselves honestly, if we stop collecting these revenues entirely, what public services shall we stop funding?

[00:08:55]Do we go back to the spectacle of stalled road projects that had become a hallmark across our country?

[00:09:04]Do we stop the fertilizer subsidy that is enhancing food security?

[00:09:10]Do we cut the security budget that helps us secure our borders, combat criminal gangs, and protect citizens?

[00:09:22]Surely, our hospitals and schools must continue to function and we must continue to fund them.

[00:09:31]Equally, we are accelerating investments in renewable energy, electric mobility, modern public transport, and energy security infrastructure so that future generations of Kenyans are less exposed to global fuel instability.

[00:09:49]We must embrace electric vehicles as a first step, and the government has already ordered 3,000 electric vehicles through the Ministry of Interior for use by our security and administration officials.

[00:10:08]I'm also making a declaration that the first 100,000 electric vehicles to be imported into Kenya, whether for public service or private use, will be duty-free even as we continue to work with private sector for investors in the electric vehicle manufacturing to establish production facilities in Kenya.

[00:10:37]This is not only about overcoming the current crisis, but also about building a more self-reliant, resilient, and economically secure Kenya for generations ahead.

[00:10:50]These are not easy decisions.

[00:10:55]Leadership requires us to make responsible decisions not only for today, but also for the long-term stability of our economy and our country.

[00:11:08]Because we do not know how long this crisis will continue, or whether prices may even rise further in the months ahead, we must act with care, responsibility, and sustainability in our mind.

[00:11:27]Fellow citizens, every nation facing this crisis is being forced to make sacrifices.

[00:11:36]Kenya, too, is making sacrifices.

[00:11:39]But, they must be fair, responsible, and sustainable.

[00:11:46]Our responsibility as government is to solve today's problem without creating a bigger problem tomorrow.

[00:11:55]Our duty is to protect Kenyan families today while ensuring long-term stability of our economy.

[00:12:05]That is why government continues to review every possible measure to reduce pressure on citizens while safeguarding the economic stability of our country.

[00:12:17]We are engaging stakeholders across the transport sector, agriculture, industry, and business community to develop practical interventions aimed at reducing the impact on livelihoods and economic activity.

[00:12:32]This crisis is also a reminder that Kenya must never remain permanently vulnerable to external oil shocks and conflicts happening thousands of kilometers away from our borders.

[00:12:46]Therefore, the government of Kenya, working together with our East African partner states, and the private sector, is determined to bring into production our oil reserves and resources in Turkana and across the East African region, alongside the development of a regional refinery to reduce our vulnerability to disruptions beyond our control.

[00:13:13]And that is why I have in the last 6 months engaged my colleagues in the East African region to bring all our efforts together so that we can use the resources that we have in our region to industrialize our region, but also to build the necessary resilience by having our own refinery in this in this region.

[00:13:46]That is an That is work in progress, and I will be briefing the country as we move along. We've called off the strike. We had suspended the strike, but we've called it off. So, we will not have strike next week. We are going to work. Thank you. His Excellency the President of the Republic of Kenya as the transport sector, we are happy with what you've come up with.

[00:14:10]And we are going to support the government. The government belongs to us.

[00:14:14]We want to thank the governor of Nairobi because we know that the county of Nairobi lost a lot of money.

[00:14:21]And we agreed with him that we have to work together to make sure that everything is going to work. So, we want to thank the government. We want to thank the president.

[00:14:29]We know he has sorted out a lot of our issues which has been pending for long.

[00:14:35]The issue of 14 seater within Nairobi and Mombasa, he has sorted it out. We know very well within Mombasa we do not have new vehicles. We have all the vehicles. We know what has been happening. Our people has been taking vehicles from Somali and Tanzania, the old vehicles to bring them here. They are not paying duty. So, we welcome that His Excellency. We are going to work with your government. We all of us we are Kenyans. We want peace in this country, and we want to to to be united so that we can move forward. When the president talk about Singapore, to me I've seen it's a a reality. So, let's put politics aside.

[00:15:13]Politics will come 2027. Let's build our country. Thank you.

[00:15:18]Uh Your Excellency ours is to say thank you.

[00:15:25]My name is Edwin Mukaabana, chairman of Federation of Public Transport.

[00:15:30]Mine today is very little.

[00:15:33]It's to announce to all our members, especially our investors, and drivers and conductors, that after these good deliberations we have had with His Excellency, we are saying that the strike that we had suspended has been called off.

[00:16:00]Fully, and we are hoping that this will take immediate effect.

[00:16:09]Everybody to return the vehicles on the road, and for the entire country to understand that I think there is an economy here to save.

[00:16:21]And we are all looking forward to His Excellency to ensure that he drives the agenda of public transport. We have been uh promised a lot of things, including the electric motor vehicle.

[00:16:34]Your Excellency was on the task force for electric motor vehicle.

[00:16:38]And uh we came up with very many resolutions. It is very good that today you have spoken to it.

[00:16:46]We further would like to thank you very much on your statement on auctioneering, and insurance and insurance. This is fantastic for us.

[00:16:58]That is all I would like to say today for wananchi.

[00:17:05]Please bear with us. I think the economy comes first. Thank you very much. I would like to first start by apologizing to the country for the time that uh we went on strike. Ours we said the vehicle stay at home.

[00:17:23]But we realized goons infiltrated and uh some maybe political interests came in and people lost their vehicles.

[00:17:33]People lost uh the schools were vandalized and other institutions. That was not us.

[00:17:40]And uh that's why we saw it best to go for negotiations. And as a result of the negotiations, His Excellency has been kind enough to to give us what we've cried for since independence.

[00:17:57]The review of the insurance. So I will not dwell to what the Excellency talked about. The auctioneers, everybody who has a vehicle knows what is happening to us. We've [snorts] lost more than enough. People have died because of stress and pressure.

[00:18:13]Now to yet to ni kushukuru kwa sababu we've moved a step in the best direction as an industry.

[00:18:21]Uh lastly, there were many things that we discussed. We've been given uh CS uh Yeah, CS um for for transport so that we go and complete all the other pending issues.

[00:18:39]We've uh maybe he did not have enough time to talk about it, His Excellency. But we've uh the buses were being disturbed and we've been uh they've been uh waved from going to weighbridges.

[00:18:53]Okay. And uh many other things. So ours is to say that we go to work and we hope that by the next cycle, we will get even better than the 10 shillings. So thank you very much, Excellency.