The President, Dr. William Ruto, has ordered a crackdown on foreigners running small businesses in Kenya, directing the government to begin the exercise on Monday, September 7.

The Head of State said foreigners should not be allowed to compete with Kenyan citizens in small-scale businesses, specifically pointing to hawking and small retail shops.

 

“From next week, all traders doing those small businesses should close them,” Ruto said on Wednesday, September 2, 2026, while addressing Micro, Small and Medium Enterprise (MSME) traders at State House.

 

The directive comes as the government pushes for greater participation by Kenyans in businesses and economic activities that Ruto says should benefit local entrepreneurs.

“We have made efforts to improve the economy…We have not improved investor confidence for hawkers to come to Kenya,” he said.

Ruto specifically identified foreign hawkers and operators of small shops as businesses that should be left to Kenyans.

“It cannot be that a person comes from China or elsewhere to be a hawker or open a small shop,” he said.

The directive is expected to affect foreigners engaged in small-scale trading, although the President did not provide a detailed list of businesses covered by the order or outline the agencies that will enforce it.

 

That leaves questions over how the September 7 crackdown will be implemented, including how authorities will identify affected traders and what action will be taken against businesses operated by foreigners.

 

The announcement also comes amid heightened attention on foreign participation in Kenya’s small-business sector.

Ruto linked the crackdown to the Local Content Bill, 2025, which is before Parliament and seeks to create a legal framework for increasing Kenyan participation in economic activity.

 

The Bill is not yet law. Parliament says it seeks to ensure that foreign companies provide greater opportunities for Kenyan businesses and citizens, including through local sourcing. One of its proposals is for at least 60 per cent of goods, services and supplies to be sourced locally where they meet the required standards.

 

Ruto has called for the legislation to be accelerated, saying it should identify businesses that foreigners would not be allowed to operate.

“We have a Bill in Parliament on Trade. In that Bill (Local Content Bill, 2025), we have proposed that there should be businesses that foreigners should not do here in Kenya, by law,” he said.