Kenyan artists awarded Sh24 million in first-ever PAVRISK royalty payout
Speaking during PAVRISK’s Annual General Meeting (AGM) held in Nairobi, Board chairperson Edwardo Waigwa said the Sh24 million represents 70 per cent of the Sh45 million collected during the 2024/2025 financial year.
Kenyan artists have received their first royalty payments from the Performing and Audio Visual Rights Society of Kenya (PAVRISK), totalling Sh24 million.
The payout, which reached 5,887 members, marks a significant milestone as the organisation completes its inaugural general distribution.
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Speaking during PAVRISK’s Annual General Meeting (AGM) held in Nairobi, Board chairperson Edwardo Waigwa said the Sh24 million represents 70 per cent of the Sh45 million collected during the 2024/2025 financial year.
He confirmed that this distribution aligns with the mandatory 70-30 royalty sharing rule.
Waigwa explained that the Kenya Association of Music Producers (KAMP) and Related Copyright were allocated Sh6.9 million to distribute to sound recording producers, under a formal agreement between the two collecting societies.
“We made the achievement despite battling several legal court cases as we fought to retain our legal operating license issued to us by KECOBO,” he said.
“This distribution is a moral and institutional milestone: it proves that investments in systems and governance yield results for rights-holders. Going forward we will continue to refine distribution algorithms, expand monitoring coverage and ensure that payouts are timely, transparent and traceable,” Waigwa added.
PAVRISK, a multirights Collection Management Organisation regulated by the Kenya Copyright Board (KECOBO), collects and distributes royalties to musicians and audio-visual rights holders.
The organisation is part of international networks, including the Africa Federation of Audio-Visual Societies (AFAS) in Harare and the Global Audio-Visual Association (GAVA) in Geneva.
Waigwa revealed that PAVRISK is working to join IFPI, representing phonogram producers, and CISAC, representing authors and composers, while also maintaining 36 bilateral agreements with other CMOs worldwide.
Looking ahead, Waigwa highlighted that PAVRISK’s top priority is updating tariffs following the annulment of previous instruments.
He said the process will involve full consultation with members, BMOs, and KECOBO to ensure tariffs are legally compliant, economically appropriate, and fair to all parties.
“Proper public participation and statutory compliance will be non-negotiable in this process,” he stressed.
On operations, PAVRISK plans to scale its digital licensing systems, grow the licensing champion model across hospitals, malls, broadcasters, supermarkets, banks, and hospitality venues, and strengthen county-level engagement. Investments will also continue in media monitoring and real-time analytics to ensure distributions reflect actual use and to prevent revenue losses in streaming and new media platforms.
The AGM was also streamed virtually and attended by PAVRISK Board members and CEO Joseph Njagih.
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