Treasury Vows to Challenge Court Ruling on Safaricom Stake Sale

The National Treasury has vowed to challenge the High Court decision nullifying the government’s sale of a 15 per cent stake in Safaricom PLC to Vodacom, saying the transaction was conducted within the law and in line with prudent management of public finances.

Treasury Cabinet Secretary John Mbadi in a statement on Wednesday, said the government was studying the judgment delivered on Tuesday, September 15, 2026, before pursuing further legal action.

“The National Treasury will pursue this appeal vigorously and provide further updates as the matter progresses through the courts,” Mbadi said in a statement.

The three-judge High Court bench nullified the divestiture and ordered the 15 per cent Safaricom shares to be restored to government ownership. The court faulted the process over, among other issues, inadequate public participation and failure to disclose material information about the transaction.

The ruling affects a transaction that was completed on June 30, 2026, after the government transferred the 15 per cent stake to Vodafone Kenya, part of the Vodacom Group.

The transaction increased Vodacom’s effective shareholding in Safaricom to 55 per cent, while the government’s stake fell to 20 per cent.

The government had sold the 15 per cent stake for approximately KSh204.3 billion at KSh34 per share. It also received KSh40.2 billion upfront in exchange for rights linked to future dividends from its remaining 20 per cent stake, bringing the transaction proceeds to about KSh244.5 billion.

Mbadi defended the process, arguing that the transaction underwent Cabinet consideration, parliamentary scrutiny and approval before its implementation.

He said the government had intended to unlock value from a public asset and channel the proceeds towards national development, while retaining what Treasury considered a strategic stake in Safaricom.

“We do not accept that the safeguards built into this transaction, including the protections extended to Safaricom’s employees, dealers and business partners, amounted to the constitutional and procedural failures as the court has asserted,” Mbadi said.

The Treasury further argued that the sale was designed to balance the government’s development obligations with the need for prudent management of public resources.