Nairobi — Deputy President Kithure Kindiki has pushed back against critics who dismiss Kenya's ambition to attain first-world status, insisting the country is firmly on course to become a developed economy within the lifetime of the current generation.
Kindiki said pessimistic comparisons that cite Singapore's small size to argue Kenya cannot follow a similar path miss the broader context of the country's development model.
"Those who say Singapore is too small to be compared to Kenya should understand that our first-world ambition is not modeled on Singapore alone," he said Friday, noting that Kenya is also drawing lessons from several Asian economies, including China.
The Deputy President pointed out that China, a mega country with a landmass of 9.6 million square kilometers and a population of about 1.5 billion people, is nearly 17 times larger than Kenya, yet managed a dramatic economic turnaround within a short period.
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"China's turning point was 1978 -- just the other day. In about 40 years, it moved from being a poor, isolated country to a first-world economy," Kindiki said.
"Kenya will transition to the first world in our lifetime."
His remarks echo President William Ruto's November 20 State of the Nation Address, in which the Head of State declared that Kenya is now on a historic trajectory to join the ranks of the world's leading economies.
Addressing a joint sitting of Parliament, President Ruto said reforms undertaken over the past three years have laid firm foundations for economic take-off, drawing parallels with the rise of the Asian Tigers -- Singapore, South Korea, Hong Kong and Malaysia -- countries he said were once Kenya's peers.
"If they could rise, so can Kenya. It can be done. Let me repeat: it can be done," Ruto told lawmakers, urging the nation to abandon what he termed a culture of settling for average outcomes.
The President dismissed critics as "high priests of eternal pessimism," accusing them of ignoring tangible progress across key sector.
However, the government's vision continues to face pushback from the Opposition.
On December 8, Wiper Party leader Kalonzo Musyoka challenged the feasibility of transforming Kenya into a Singapore-style economy, arguing that poor governance, corruption and fiscal indiscipline undermine the ambition.
Speaking during the launch of the Okoa Uchumi report, Kalonzo said Singapore's success was built on order, accountability and a strong intolerance for corruption -- values he claimed are lacking in Kenya's current governance environment.
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He accused the government of reckless borrowing, weak oversight and mismanagement of public finances, warning against the sale of key national assets such as Safaricom, Kenya Pipeline Company and Jomo Kenyatta International Airport.
Kalonzo proposed stronger parliamentary oversight, protection of constitutional watchdogs and a transparent debt restructuring process, saying sustainable growth cannot be achieved without accountability.
Despite the criticism, Kindiki and President Ruto maintain that Kenya is at a critical inflection point, comparable to the early years of the Asian Tigers, and that bold, disciplined choices will deliver long-term prosperity.
"Countries that rose to first-world status were not extraordinary," Ruto said. "They simply made courageous decisions. If they could rise, so can Kenya."
