Parliament pushes to cut term limits for road bodies bosses from 10 to 6 years
The Kenya Roads (Amendment) (No. 2) Bill, 2025, proposes that shorter tenures would promote accountability and align the agencies with established governance standards.
A fresh legislative push in Parliament seeks to trim the term limits of directors of Kenya’s top road agencies from the current 10 years to a maximum of six, in a move aimed at boosting oversight and performance.
The Kenya Roads (Amendment) (No. 2) Bill, 2025, proposes that shorter tenures would promote accountability and align the agencies with established governance standards.
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The sponsor of the Bill, National Assembly Majority Leader Kimani Ichung’wah, said the proposed law seeks to amend Section 13 of the Kenya Roads Act, Cap 408, to reduce the term of chief executive officers or equivalent positions in state corporations from five years (renewable once) to three years, also renewable once, subject to satisfactory performance.
Currently, directors-general of the Kenya National Highways Authority (KeNHA), Kenya Urban Roads Authority (KURA), and Kenya Rural Roads Authority (KeRRA) serve a five-year renewable term, which allows them to hold office for up to 10 years.
“Section 13(3) of the Kenya Roads Act is amended by deleting the word 'five' and substituting therefore the word 'three'. A person who, immediately before the commencement of this Act, held office as a director-general shall serve for the unexpired period of his or her term and shall be eligible, for a person serving the first term, for appointment for one further term of one year,” Ichung’wah said.
“The principal object of the Bill is to amend section 13 of the Kenya Roads Act, Cap 408, to align the Act with the Mwongozo Code of Governance of State Corporations.”
He said the proposed term limit is intended to enhance performance and good governance within the management structures of State corporations and their boards.
“The Code of Conduct for State Corporations provides that chief executive officers or equivalent positions of the State corporations serve for a term of three years, renewable once, subject to satisfactory performance of the person holding office,” he said.
“The term of office is intended to ensure performance and promote good governance in the management of State corporations and their boards, as should be in practice.”
He noted that the current provisions in the Kenya Roads Act, which allow a five-year term, are inconsistent with the governance standards established in the Mwongozo Code and undermine the values of accountability.
Term of office
“However, in the case of State corporations in the roads sector—these being the Kenya Rural Roads Authority (KeRRA), the Kenya Urban Roads Authority (KURA), and the Kenya National Highways Authority (KeNHA)—Section 13 of the Act provides that the director-general of each authority shall serve for a term of office of five years,” he said.
“This is contrary to the Code of Governance for State Corporations and therefore the current provisions of Section 13 of the Act undoubtedly negate the values of good governance.”
Under the existing Section 13 of Cap. 408, each road agency is mandated to have a director-general appointed by its respective board, in consultation with the Cabinet Secretary, from among three candidates competitively selected by the board. The director-general is charged with overseeing the day-to-day operations and administration of the authority to which they are appointed.
The Bill also stipulates that the director-general, aside from being the accounting and administrative head, is responsible for implementing policies and programmes of the authority and reporting to the board, managing funds and property, organising and supervising staff, developing operational, strategic, business and annual plans and fostering inter-agency cooperation in the roads sector.
The director-general is further tasked with advising the board on relevant matters and ensuring economic, efficient and cost-effective internal structures, in addition to fulfilling the authority’s performance targets, service standards, and legal obligations.
The Bill, if passed, will not only reduce the term limits but also include a transitional clause to guide current officeholders. It states that anyone serving as a director-general before the enactment of the Bill shall continue serving for the unexpired portion of their term and, if in their first term, will be eligible for reappointment for one more three-year term.
The Bill also seeks to align the Kenya Roads Act 2007 with ongoing reforms that began with Sessional Paper No. 5 of 2006, which exposed severe administrative and operational inefficiencies in the transport sector. A 2021 amendment to the Act fixed the term for directors-general of roads agencies at five years, renewable once.
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