KPCG and PBO Authority Forge United Front to Fast-Track Implementation of PBO Act, 2013

Nairobi, 13^th May 2025 — In a significant step towards strengthening civic engagement and institutional collaboration, the Kenya Platform for Climate Governance (KPCG), as part of the Civil Society Organizations (CSO) Inclusive Working Group on the Implementation of the Public Benefits Organizations (PBO) Act, convened a high-level consultative meeting earlier today with Dr. Laxmana Kiptoo, the Director General of the PBO Authority.

Held at the Director General’s office in Nairobi, the engagement provided a timely platform for CSOs to appraise the PBO Authority on the resolutions and momentum generated during the recent CSO stakeholders’ meeting convened by META. The meeting culminated in a joint statement — signed by over 80 CSOs by 13 May 2025 — calling for the urgent and full implementation of the PBO Act, 2013. This unified position reflects the sector’s increasing resolve to anchor civil society work in a robust, transparent, and enabling legal framework.

The PBO Act, though enacted in 2013, only came into force on 14 May 2024, following over a decade of advocacy and litigation. Its implementation now marks a turning point for the regulatory and operational landscape for non-profit organizations in Kenya. The Act promises to provide legal certainty, protect the autonomy of CSOs, and strengthen accountability mechanisms across the sector.

In response, Dr. Kiptoo outlined the Authority’s proposed road map toward the development of the accompanying regulations, the initiation of the registration process, and the compilation of a national register of Public Benefits Organizations. The Director General reaffirmed the Authority’s commitment to a participatory and transparent process that ensures the voices of civil society actors are reflected in the final regulations.

A key outcome of the meeting was a consensus to harmonize the respective roadmaps of the PBO Authority and the CSO Working Group, with an agreement to jointly coordinate consultations on the draft regulations. These are expected to be released in June 2025 and will inform the broader framework guiding the registration and oversight of PBOs across the country. Importantly, both parties committed to co-developing an inclusive process for countrywide public participation — a critical requirement for legitimacy, ownership, and the alignment of the regulations with the lived realities of civil society organizations.

The CSO leaders present lauded Dr. Kiptoo for his open and consultative approach, noting that his willingness to work collaboratively signals a new chapter of cooperation between the state and non-state actors. They reaffirmed their collective commitment to support the implementation of the PBO Act in its entirety, ensuring that the law delivers on its intended purpose — to create a conducive environment for the growth, regulation, and accountability of public benefit organizations in Kenya.

This renewed partnership underscores the importance of unity of purpose among CSOs, particularly at this crucial juncture. As the sector prepares for the public consultations and roll-out of the regulations, the imperative is clear: align efforts, mobilize constituencies, and ensure the PBO Act becomes a living instrument of democratic governance, social accountability, and developmental progress.