Okoa Uchumi piles pressure on State to publish IMF report

Nairobi, Kenya - Okoa Uchumi, a campaign group, is pressuring the Kenyan government to release the International Monetary Fund (IMF) Governance and Anti-Corruption Diagnostic Report. The group argues that the Executive is withholding a crucial evaluation of corruption and management shortcomings of public resources. They insist on immediate public disclosure and formal presentation in Parliament for lawmakers and Kenyans to review the report's conclusions and suggestions.

Okoa Uchumi claims the issue has re-emerged in Parliament after Geoffrey Wandeto asked the Departmental Committee on Finance and National Planning about the report's status. The campaign expects a response from Parliament within two weeks, but the government has yet to reveal a timeline for the report's release. The government requested the diagnostic in September 2024, and the final report was received by the government in June 2026.

The demand for the report's release follows the World Bank's warning that governance weaknesses and corruption are hindering Kenya's economic growth, investment, and job creation. According to the World Bank, addressing governance issues could boost Kenya's Gross Domestic Product by up to 20% by 2035 while generating additional, higher-quality jobs.

The report estimates that corruption and collusion in public spending and revenue collection contribute up to 2 percentage points of GDP in annual fiscal deficits, increasing borrowing requirements and limiting resources for development. Additionally, 39% of firms cite corruption as a significant barrier to business, particularly affecting medium-sized enterprises due to bribe demands.

The World Bank warns that governance weaknesses also raise the cost of essential services and inputs like electricity, logistics, and land. Okoa Uchumi asserts that the World Bank's findings validate the need to disclose the separate IMF diagnostic, stating that Kenyans should have access to an assessment of systemic governance weaknesses, corruption vulnerabilities, and institutional failures in public resource management.

The assessment, commissioned due to public frustration over living costs, taxation, and accountability during the 2024 Gen Z-led protests against the Finance Bill, examined governance and corruption risks in key state operations, including public financial management, procurement, taxation, revenue administration, and market regulation.

The IMF shared a draft governance assessment with the Kenyan government in June 2026, subject to its consent. Okoa Uchumi questions why a report conducted with public resources and extensive consultations should remain inaccessible to citizens. They argue that withholding the findings deprives Kenyans and their elected representatives of the chance to examine governance failures and evaluate proposed reforms.

The campaign urges the government to release the report, present it in Parliament, and provide a clear roadmap for implementing its recommendations, including timelines. They warn that hiding the findings prevents citizens from addressing governance failures and assessing the suggested reforms. Okoa Uchumi emphasizes that the 2024 protests, which sparked the diagnostic, should not be rewarded with a report kept secret from the public.

They emphasize that Kenya's future should not be constructed behind closed doors, urging the government to release the report and enable Kenyans to hold public institutions accountable.