00:00 What does this act mean to you?
00:02 What does this act mean for your family?
00:05 And what does this act mean for our county?
00:08 I'll go through very few provisions that we have made.
00:12 Initially, in market stalls and market services,
00:16 there had been a proposal to increase levies by 30% on market stalls.
00:21 However, after public participation where we listened,
00:24 those charges were revised to a modest 10% increment given inflation.
00:29 On alcoholic drinks and licensing, and this is very interesting,
00:33 every single public participation session proposed a raise in those charges
00:38 because of the sprawling nature of these establishments.
00:43 The proposal to raise charges on alcoholic drinks and licensing was adopted
00:48 to help control the number of drinking outlets across the county
00:53 that many of our young people are falling now captive to.
00:56 The city inspectorate department, after a lot of sessions,
01:01 not just the public participation sessions, but my own engagements
01:06 with those in the public transport sector, the matatu sector, the taxis,
01:11 impounding charges were retained in some areas and reduced in others to drive compliance.
01:17 But beyond that, the fees charged to those matatus that don't terminate in the CBD were halved
01:24 because many of them don't get to the CBD and they don't even pay at all.
01:28 And the matatu sector, and I must thank them because we've organized them into corridors,
01:31 said they themselves will help us ensure 100% compliance of those matatus
01:36 that don't terminate in the CBD to be paying for what they do.
01:40 That is Outering, Taj Mall, that is in Eastlands, and Kawangware, and all of those parts.
01:45 But for the rest, we've been working very well.
01:48 For one year, you have not had matatu strikes,
01:51 you have not had hue and cry that is always in that sector.
01:54 In outdoor advertising and signage, application fees for outdoor advertising
01:59 have been increased in a modest manner.
02:02 Our aim this year is really to drive compliance,
02:04 especially in the medium and small format advertising that is in many of our businesses.
02:10 In physical planning, land and housing, which is our biggest revenue source,
02:15 we had proposed to increase rent by 25%,
02:19 but following consultations with the great people who have given us mandate,
02:23 we have only increased that by 10% in our estates.
02:27 On public health services, some proposed new charges have been put on reproductive health,
02:33 but we have scrapped all of those.
02:36 People expressed their views and showed that they are actually interested
02:39 and are serious consumers of our health services.
02:43 We have heard you. We've maintained and reduced some of those charges.
02:48 In parking, the new law provides for new parking zones that are well defined.
02:54 As we move and adopt technology, we will increase measures
02:58 to make sure you get value for your money when you come into the CBD.
03:01 If you come for a few minutes in the CBD in many zones, you don't have to pay for the whole day.
03:05 But for now, the new charges introduced for registration of taxes in border borders
03:09 have been accepted by the sector because even they want order and dignity
03:15 in the provision of their services.
03:18 In the alternative provision of basic education and training, up-bed schools,
03:22 we know that many of our schools in Nairobi are not formal schools.
03:28 They are informal schools in the informal settlements.
03:32 We have only 209 public primary schools.
03:36 And when we decided to embark on a program to feed the children,
03:40 the leadership of these other schools said, "These other children are also your children,
03:44 and they are struggling."
03:45 And that is why, even when we revise our supplementary,
03:48 we are building 5,000 new classrooms in Nairobi over the next three years,
03:51 starting with 500 this year, and in each and every ward,
03:55 around 38 of those in this first financial year.
03:58 But for the alternate provision of basic education and training,
04:02 up-bed schools who struggle to pay the fee of 10,000 shillings,
04:07 we have reduced it to 3,000, which can be paid every term.
04:11 1,000 first term, 1,000 second term, and 1,000 third term.
04:15 I want to acknowledge that I have received communication from this association
04:19 that has many thousands of our children studying in these institutions.
04:23 They are happy, and they have promised to comply.
04:26 The dealers in the petrol station outlets came to me and they said
04:30 that they have been lumped under one charge of 100,000 shillings.
04:34 Whether you have one pump of kerosene and paraffin,
04:37 or you are a big multinational with 10 pumps,
04:41 and we listened to them, and we agreed to graduate the fees that are charged to them.
04:46 We listened to Nairobians who said that yes, they want to pay in hundreds.
04:50 We are the only county that has a revised valuation rule of 2019,
04:55 and they said that they would love to pay, but would love to pay in installments.
04:59 For the first time in the history of this county,
05:02 we will allow for Nairobians to pay monthly for 10 months,
05:05 leaving the last two months for enforcement.
05:09 In our discussions with many business people,
05:14 before the campaigns, and once we got into office,
05:18 many of our business people have complained
05:21 at the numerous licenses and fees that they have to pay and paste on their doors.
05:26 If you go to any business just across City Hall, down in Mwai Avenue,
05:30 you may not know the color of the wall,
05:32 because there are 10, 15 licenses pasted on the notice boards.
05:36 This Finance Act heralds the provision of a unified single business permit,
05:43 where once you go through the steps,
05:47 you will only have one certificate that you put up on your wall,
05:52 with a QR code, and our inspectors,
05:55 and we've said that inspection will be coordinated.
05:58 You will not have one person coming today,
06:00 another person from a different sector tomorrow,
06:02 another person the day after,
06:04 but one inspection team that comes can be able to say
06:07 whether you've paid for everything that pertains to your business.
06:10 That is the first time this is happening in our country,
06:12 that's the first time it is happening in Nairobi,
06:14 and we'd like to urge the national government
06:17 to also follow cue with the other charges that are statutory.
06:21 That is the Prisc, the Camp, the Music Society, ETC,
06:24 let it be one license.
06:25 Let business people use their time and energy in doing business,
06:29 not in complying.
06:30 Let's make it convenient, let's make it easy,
06:32 let's make it certain, and let's make it predictable.
06:35 [End]
06:37 [End]
06:38 [BLANK_AUDIO]
