NAIROBI, KENYA — President William Ruto has reaffirmed his unwavering commitment to driving transformative change in Kenya, emphasizing his determination to implement lasting reforms for the nation’s development.
Speaking at The Co-operative University of Kenya in Karen, Nairobi, during the installation of Dr. Benard Chitunga as Chancellor, President Ruto reiterated that his mandate to lead the country carries a profound responsibility to enact significant change.
He assured Kenyans of his resolve to deliver on this promise, despite prevailing skepticism.
“Many people may not believe what I am saying, but you will be shocked. I am going to confound the naysayers,” he declared.
The President asserted that effective leadership necessitates making difficult but necessary decisions, even when they lack immediate popular support. He cited his administration’s reforms to the National Social Security Fund (NSSF) as a prime example.
“I undertook to the people of Kenya that I was going to change the savings culture. You all remember that everyone used to pay NSSF Ksh 200 until 2023, and that was okay. Explain to me why Ksh 200 is okay. How is Ksh 200 going to amount to savings?” he questioned.
President Ruto defended the decision to increase NSSF contributions, arguing that it has already yielded substantial positive outcomes. “We made the right decision. Today, every Kenyan is saving 6% of their salary, and every employer is saving 6% on behalf of their employees. We have some statistics. From independence up to 2023, we saved Ksh 320 billion. That’s in 60 years. However, in just two years, from 2023 to the present, we have saved Ksh 280 billion,” he revealed.
He further provided a comparative analysis of Kenya’s savings situation with its regional neighbors, stating, “Uganda has a bigger social security fund than Kenya although they have a quarter of our economy. Tanzania has a bigger national social security fund, even though they have 50% of our economy. Why? Because they made the right decisions about savings.”
“In Uganda, everybody saves 10% of their salary, and in Tanzania, everybody saves 8% of their salary. But in Kenya, we were saving Ksh 200, and that was supposed to be okay and I was supposed to do nothing about it,” he added.
President Ruto projected that by the end of the current year, Kenya will have doubled the total amount saved through the NSSF over the previous 60 years. He further asserted that by 2027, the fund will have amassed a trillion shillings, “because we have made some bold decisions.”
