Nairobi raises city charges

A bill signed into law by Nairobi governor Evans Kidero will see a sharp increase in the city's rents, rates, taxes and service charges, pushing the cost of living even further in the Kenyan capital.

The County Finance Bill includes significant increases in almost all service areas, in some cases by margins of up to 100 per cent. Property owners will pay land rates at 34 per cent – double the current 17 per cent – while the city has also increased the rents on all its residential property.

The city's parking fees will be doubled from Sh140 to Sh300 per day, while the fees for operators of large private car parks have also been doubled, a price increase that will likely be passed on to customers.

Likewise retail has been affected, with the biggest supermarkets hit the hardest. The cost of commuter transport is also likely to be reviewed upwards following increased licence fees for all transport operators.

Kidero said the decision to increase the charges was necessitated by the massive rise in the cost of services, and that land values have increased "in all parts of the city at an average rate of 400 times" since land rates were last valuated in 1982.