Kenya is now poised to receive a delayed Ksh97 billion ($743 million) loan from the World Bank after President William Ruto signed the Conflict-of-Interest Bill into law on Wednesday, July 30.
The law now enables Kenya to meet a key financing condition set by the global lender.
The bill, which had stalled for months after the President returned it to Parliament because of weak safeguards, was finally passed in July 2025 with amendments fully addressing his reservations.
It brings together all conflict-of-interest provisions into one law, repeals the Public Officer Ethics Act, and gives the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) powers to enforce anti-graft measures across the public service.
“The principal object of the Bill is to consolidate the laws relating to conflict of interest and establish a framework for managing conflicts of interest in the discharge of public duties. The Bill contains various measures to ensure compliance, including recusal of a public officer from a discussion or decision, and declaration of income, assets and liabilities,” reads part of the Bill.
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How the World Bank Loan Was Ties to the Bill
The delay in passing the legislation had caused the World Bank to withhold the disbursement of $743.12 million (Ksh96 billion), pushing the Treasury to revise the national budget for a third time in the current financial year.
According to the National Treasury, several ministries were already running low on funds, raising fears of halted services and salary delays.
For instance, the State Department of Social Protection and Senior Citizens exceeded its Ksh35.7 billion budget by Ksh2.4 billion by April, while State House had spent 98 per cent of its Ksh7.96 billion allocation in the same period.
“The World Bank funding seems to be going to July because some of the legislations (Conflict of Interest Bill) that were precedent to the release of these funds were delayed,
“The Conflict-of-Interest Bill was a key Bill for the WB to give us the funding, and when it was unlocked, there was no time to take it to the WB board for approval. We are going to June 30 with a Ksh97 billion hole that, as the CS, I did not prepare for,” Treasury CS John Mbadi said earlier in June.”
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Inside the Bill
The Conflict-of-Interest Bill, 2025 repeals the Public Officer Ethics Act and consolidates all laws governing conflict of interest under one statute.
Additionally, it places the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) in charge of enforcement, in line with Article 79 of the Constitution.
Moreover, the law introduces strict restrictions on public officers engaging in contracts where they have a personal interest, and prevents them from accepting outside employment that may pose a conflict.
On the other hand, it introduces new wealth declaration rules for top officials, including judges, Cabinet members, and MCAs.
It also empowers citizens to file complaints and enables concurrent investigations by the EACC and other oversight bodies.
With the signing of the bill, Kenya has cleared the way for the disbursement of the funds from the world bank and the loan is expected to be disbursed soon.
According to budget plans, Kenya will continue to rely on the World Bank for support until at least the 2028/29 financial year, expecting to receive a total of Ksh682 billion in equal annual disbursements.
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