US Decries Locking Out of American Companies from Government Tenders in Kenya

The US has accused corrupt Kenyan public officials of locking out American companies from government contracts.

The US Trade Representative’s office lamented that tender bids in Kenya are often manipulated to benefit a few public officials and their cronies, hence locking out qualified American companies.

“US firms have had limited success bidding on government tenders in Kenya. There are widespread reports that corruption often influences the outcome of public tenders, and many of these tenders are challenged in the courts,” the office said.

It added: “Foreign firms, some without proven track records, have won government contracts when partnered with well-connected Kenyan firms.” 

The US is seeking more transparency in the tendering process in Kenya ahead of the proposed free trade agreement (FTA) between the two countries.

In 2019, Kenya shifted all public tenders and procurement transactions to the Integrated Financial Management Information System (IFMIS) as part of its efforts to tackle fraud in public tenders.

But the US Trade Representative’s office says “IFMIS has security gaps that make it vulnerable to manipulation, including the duplication of authorized users’ identities and non-users ability to remotely access IFMIS.” 

“Corruption is widely reported to affect government procurement tender processes at both the national and county levels. The Government has not implemented anti-corruption laws effectively,” the agency added.