Nairobi — President William Ruto has said that he has delivered 80 per cent of the promises he made to Kenyans in the 2022 elections, citing economic stability, education, and infrastructure development as some of the key accomplishments so far.
Addressing the UDA National Governing Council at State House, Nairobi, on Monday, President Ruto highlighted the progress of his transformation agenda, saying it was firmly on track and affirming his readiness to face opponents at the ballot.
He noted that some 6,000 kilometres of stalled roads, abandoned by contractors due to nonpayment, had now been revived.
"Roads and infrastructure remain a crucial component in moving Kenya toward first-world status. When we came into office, most contractors had left the sites. Today, all contractors are back; they are on site and working. I want to confirm that we have raised Ksh175 billion and are raising another Ksh120 billion to ensure all contractors remain on site until we complete the 6,000 kilometres of roads under construction across the country," President Ruto said.
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He singled out the construction of new roads and the expansion of existing ones, such as the dualling of the 175KM Rironi-Mau Summit, as central to the country's development ambitions.
"We have been faithful to the implementation of the agenda upon which the people of Kenya voted for this administration. We are ready to face our competitors with our scorecard and ask them what they can do better than what we have done," he said.
"Professor (DP Kithure Kindiki) has explained the implementation of our manifesto very well. Some people are pushing lies and propaganda on social media, but today we are showing our scorecard, which clearly demonstrates that we are delivering on the promises made to Kenyans," President Ruto added.
On agriculture, he said: "The economy is now strong, and we continue pushing the sector. We have eight million bags of fertiliser for the long rains; farmers can start planting." He added that 10.1 million bags were used last year, projected to rise to 12.5 million this year, with three million already at NCPB stores and another three million having left Mombasa Port.
Highlighting progress in the dairy sector, he said: "The price of sexed semen has dropped from Ksh8,000 to Ksh1,400. Kenya has moved from producing 4.6 billion litres of milk to 5.2 billion litres. Today, we are the largest milk producer in Africa, thanks to our interventions in this sector."
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On education, he assured Kenyans that challenges in 21 public universities had been resolved, and Competency-Based Education (CBE) was firmly on track. He also noted that the shortage of tutors had been addressed with the hiring of the largest number of teachers since independence.
He addressed ongoing road projects, saying: "We had a big problem with Mau Mau Road, that was the big quarrel Wa Muchomba had with me, but we are 50, 60, 70 per cent complete."
Githunguri MP Gathoni Wa Muchomba, previously aligned with former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua, declared her support for President Ruto's second-term bid, noting that roads were nearing completion.
DP Kithure Kindiki echoed the President's remarks, saying: "As you are aware, we have started dualling Rironi-Mau Summit. No new taxes and no new debt. The President has made it clear that to take Kenya to the next level, we must continue building new roads."
