The Ministry of Information, Communications and the Digital Economy (MICDE) has developed elaborate strategies to enhance performance as it races to hit the targets in key areas of the Digital Superhighway and the Creative Economy, as spelt out under the Bottom-Up Economic Agenda (BETA).
The MICDE Cabinet Secretary, Hon.William Kabogo Gitau said that the Plan targets to achieve considerable improvement in all key mandate areas under the Ministry.
Hon.Kabogo, in a detailed report to the Departmental Committee on Communication, Information and Innovation, also spelt out the key legislations that have been lined up to catalyse and consolidate Kenya’s position as a leader in the digital revolution.
The CS, in a presentation made on his behalf by the Principal Secretary of ICT and Digital Economy Eng. John Tanui, noted that the commercialisation of National Optic Fibre Backbone Infrastructure (NOFBI) services and engagement of strategic partner(s) are among the plans to improve optimisation and performance.
The CS further noted that the Ministry has embarked on enhanced marketing of various services offered by Konza Technopolis Development Authority (KoTDA) including Data Centre cloud services and furnished apartments.
Further the Ministry is seeking to collaborate with the County Governments and Council of Governors to facilitate registration of data handling institutions under and within counties and calibrate with Regulators and umbrella bodies handling personal data to facilitate registration of their membership in compliance with the Data Protection Act 2019 and Regulations thereof.
The Government Advertising Management Information System (GAMIS) is expected to reduce manual paperwork and enhance efficiency, thereby enhancing the collection of A-in-A by eliminating manual account reconciliations.
The Ministry is also developing a Public Sector Advertising Policy which is expected to standardize advertising practices across all MDAs, thereby increasing revenue flows for Government Advertising Agency (GAA), and increase stakeholders’ engagement with accredited journalists and media enterprises on media related issues.
To protect the gains made in the digital landscape and accelerate the transformation, the Ministry has lined up various legislations and policies.
Among the policies outlined by Hon.Kabogo are National Digital Transformation Policy, National Cloud Policy Adoption Guidelines, Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Authority Bill, 2025, Review of the Data Protection Act, 2019, National Cyber Space Policy, Review of the Government Enterprise Architecture and Interoperability Framework, National Data Governance Policy, National Artificial Intelligence Policy, National Digital Transformation Policy, National BPO Policy, and Data Protection (Conduct of Compliance Audit) Regulations, 2025.
Others are National Addressing System Bill, Media Council Bill, Kenya School of Communication Bill 2024, National Addressing System Policy, Access to Information Policy, Communications Strategy completed and the National Communication Policy.
CS Kabogo further outlined the achievements for the financial year that ended June 2025.
During the period, 455 sites (public institutions) were connected to internet, exceeding the targeted number of 400 public institutions, the system Uptime (NOFBI II) network recorded 95% uptime supported by the Digital Superhighway project which provided redundant links, 35 Constituency Innovation Hubs were established and connected, and a total of 753 public Wi-Fi hotspots were installed across Counties, Sub-counties, and Wards.
Impressively, 40,288 Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) jobs were created through partnerships with firms such as Hayes Outsourcing and Open World Business, 400 interns were recruited and trained under the Presidential Digital Talent Programme, while 789,922 citizens were trained on basic ICT skills.
Further, 2,343 innovators were incubated, trained, and mentored to support innovation.
The CS further noted that the construction of the Kenya Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (Kenya-AIST) was completed and handed over, the Curriculum developed and reviewed is awaiting Commission of University Education (CUE) approval for implementation once the University Charter is awarded.
The Ministry connected 86 MDAs to Government Email Services, 10,989 Data Controllers and Processors were registered, 1,559 Data Controllers and Processors were trained, accredited 9,023 journalists against an annual target of 8,950, offered on job training to 4,447 Journalists against an annual target of 3,100, among other key achievements.
CS noted that the budget constraints and delayed exchequer releases continue affecting roll out of key programs. He noted that pending bills will form first-charge in the implementation of the budget, and that the Ministry will seek additional budget provision during Supplementary Budget Estimates.
The Ministry is seeking ways to settle the KBC outstanding pending bills. The Ministry is seeking funding to settle OECF Japanese Loan, and is pursuing Strategic Business Partnerships to enhance revenue streams and operational capacity of the national broadcaster.
Further the Ministry seeks to commercialize underutilized KBC land assets through leasing, joint ventures, or sale of rights, leverage sponsorships and collaborative ventures with private and public sector entities, revamp content across TV, radio, and digital platforms to attract wider audiences and advertisers. Further it seeks to monetize archival content – Digitize and license old KBC footage to media outlets, educators, or filmmakers.
