President William Ruto’s Special Economic Advisor, Moses Kuria, has proposed a radical overhaul of Kenya’s roads sector, calling for the dissolution of the Kenya Rural Roads Authority (KeRRA) and the Kenya Urban Roads Authority (KURA).
In a statement issued on his X account on Friday, April 25, 2025, the former Public Service Cabinet Secretary outlined a bold six-point plan aimed at decentralising road management and funding to counties, which he believes would enhance efficiency and accountability in infrastructure development.
“On the raging debate on the management of the roads sector, and as past vice chair of the Parliamentary Roads Committee, I propose,” his statement reads.
Under his proposal, the national government would solely manage the Kenya National Highways Authority (KeNHA), with 100% of the national Roads Development Budget directed to the agency.
“The national government should only manage KeNHA. 100% of the roads development budget should be directed there,” Kuria stated.
Additionally, he suggested disbanding both the Kenya Rural Roads Authority (KeRRA) and the Kenya Urban Roads Authority (KURA), proposing that each of the 47 counties establish its own County Roads Authority to oversee road management and maintenance within their jurisdictions.
“Kenya Rural Roads Authority (KeRRA) and Kenya Urban Roads Authority (KURA) should be disbanded, and every county should establish a county roads authority to manage roads in the county,” he stated.
Funding mechanisms
Kuria explained that funds from the Roads Maintenance Levy Fund (RMLF) would be allocated by the Kenya Roads Board (KRB) to these County Roads Authorities, following the proportions determined by the revenue-sharing formula established by the Commission for Revenue Allocation (CRA).
Furthermore, he proposed that any funds approved for roads by county assemblies would be designated to these new county road authorities.
“The Kenya Roads Board allocates the funds from the Roads Maintenance Levy Fund (RMLF) to the County Roads Authorities in the same proportion as the Revenue Sharing Formula as set by the Commission for Revenue Allocation. Any monies voted for roads by county assemblies are vested with the County Roads Authority,” he stated.
Autonomous entities
To ensure financial sustainability, Kuria proposed that the County Roads Authorities, under the guidance of the KRB, should be empowered to issue securitisation and other financial instruments.
This would allow them to utilise their share of RMLF allocations and county road appropriations, enabling access to capital markets and raising additional resources for road development.
“County Road Authorities as autonomous entities are guided by KRB to issue securitization and other financial instruments to raise funds from capital markets on the strength of their share of RMLF and County Roads Appropriation so as to generate resources to make the development of road assets viable,” he explained.