Nairobi — Traders in Nairobi will only be required to to have a single business permit in order to get accredited for business should either Nairobi gubernatorial candidates Polycarp Igathe or Johnson Sakaja get elected as the City boss.
The two who are vying under Azimio la Umoja One Kenya coalition and United Democratic Alliance (UDA) tickets respectively have pledged to introduce a single QR-enabled permit which they said will prevent the need of having multiple licenses and subsequently eliminate the hurdles of doing business in Kenya.
Currently, there are several business permits including city council business permits, fire inspection certificates, food handler certificates, food hygiene, Goodwill, and land rates for those who own land within the Nairobi jurisdiction
These business permits and licenses are set for renewal yearly by members of the public and the business community
The two separately made the remarks while submitting their proposals to the Kenya Private Sector Alliance during an engagement that saw the latter also issue an economic manifesto to the aspiring Governors.
"The single business permit is truly going to be single, I am going to aggregate the revenue lines from 126 to no more than a dozen then we will segment the permits and it should be a QR code, we shall catalyze business and the biggest promise is the single permit," Igathe said on Wednesday.
Sakaja, who made the remarks on Tuesday, said digitizing the single permit will also reduce corruption and instead increase revenue collected at the devolved unit
"If you go to businesses, you will find a big board with licenses, that will end, we are going to break it down to one license," Sakaja said.
The duo decried that the tedious process when acquiring permits subjects traders to frustrations, harassment, and extortion when registering for the license.
KEPSA CEO Carol Kariuki, while speaking at the event, called on the next administration to provide a mass urban mobility plan that will ease congestion in the capital.
"No city can develop without a massive urban mobility plan, we cannot grow when people are stuck in traffic for hours," Kariuki said during the roundtable.
