security of property and business is a
right enshrined in CoK2010. Everyone
has a right to security, thus one who
feels insecure can sue to have a secure
business environment.
Succession Planning
Most businesses do not go beyond the
2nd generation and very few beyond the
forth. According to Indiatimes 2013,
just 13 percent of the Family businesses
survive till 3rd generation and only 4
percent go beyond third generation.
This is due to poor succession planning.
This affects the new enterprises as the
founder may suddenly die and leave
intestate. The family left behind will
squabble over the belongings and
the startup will automatically wither.
Mortality aside barely do the founders
teach their families the business skills
required to run the enterprise. The late
Njenga Karume left a Will leaving the
estate to be run by a trust managed by
qualified managers. This would in ideal
circumstances guarantee the business
continuity to outlive the generations.
Kenyans should take advantage and
write Wills! Businessmen should have
clearly laid out succession plans and
where they strongly feel the family
might waste their funds on their demise,
they should resort to fund managers and
trustees for their businesses to prosper
way after their departure.
Ease Of Doing Business
Kenya has often lagged behind Rwanda
in the region in the ease of doing business.
Starting and maintaining a business has
been a series of bureaucratic procedures
from the number of different licenses, and
regulations. According to the World Bank
report of 2016 Ease of doing Business,
Kenya ranked 92nd worldwide.
The law backs up this as evidenced
in Petition No. 342 Of 2016, pursuant
to the provisions of Rules 4, 23, 24 of
the Constitution of Kenya (Protection
of Rights and Fundamental Freedom
88 MAL 17/17 ISSUE
‘‘ In one of his articles in the Business Daily,
Kenyan Economic Analyst Tony Watima
describes Tender-preneurship as the behavioral
attribute responsible for distorting the nature
of the country’s money multiplier effects.
Good service is being replaced by competition
for tenders in corrupt practices devaluing the
economic growth and development turnover of
government-led projects.’’
Practice Procedure Rules, 2013 Section
122 (3) of the East African Community
Customs Management Act and Rule
3 of the High Court Practice and
Procedure Rules). The petitioner sought
to order the 3rd respondent to release
the petitioner/applicant’s wrongfully
impounded goods to the petitioner
free of any warehousing demurrage,
port plus VAT and storage charges that
would have accrued a bill as security
pending the hearing and determination
of this petition.
With the reduction of the processes
to set up a business and the East
Africa Community, Free Trade areas,
COMESA and proposed intra Africa
trade area, Kenyan businesses would
have been seen to take the upper hand.
Corruption
This has been the bane of entrepreneurs in
Kenya. To get to supply and do business
has involved mega corruption and the
have not’s cannot keep up with the
slippery mandarins with loads of cash and
thus get sidelined and lose out on business.
In one of his articles in the Business
Daily, Kenyan Economic Analyst
Tony Watima describes Tender-
preneurship as the behavioral attribute
responsible for distorting the nature
of the country’s money multiplier
effects. Good service is being replaced
by competition for tenders in corrupt
practices devaluing the economic
growth and development turnover of
government-led projects.
The EACC is a public body
established under Section 3 (1) of
the Ethics and Anti-Corruption
Commission (EACC) Act, 2011.13
(1) The Commission shall have all
powers generally necessary for the
execution of its functions under the
Constitution, this Act, and any other
written law. (2) Without prejudice
to the generality of subsection
(1), the Commission shall have
the power to; Educate and create
awareness on any matter within the
Commission’s mandate; Undertake
preventive measures against unethical
and corrupt practices; Conduct
investigations on its own initiative or
on a complaint made by any person,
and, Conduct mediation, conciliation
and negotiation.
The entrepreneurs have protection and can
now sue in case they are coerced to bribe or
for any corrupt dealing. EACC is mandated
to investigate any cases of corruption.
Taxation
The tax regime in Kenya has been
highly punitive having high tax
brackets and also withholding tax
returns that many businesses rely on
to run their businesses. According
to Business Daily December 2016, a
steep rise in the cost of living in past
12 months has seen Nairobi dethrone
Lagos as Africa’s most expensive city.
London-based Economist Intelligence
Unit (EIU) says in a new listing of the