Health CS Mutahi Kagwe has directed that bars to be closed at 11pm.
“With the removal of the curfew, we are reverting to closing bars and restaurants at 11pm or the time allowed by licensing authorities,” Kagwe said during a live press conference.
This means the 7pm closure time that had been in place for bars, restaurants and night clubs has ended.
The National Police Service on Wednesday announced that measures on closure of bars by 7pm was still in place.
This came after President Uhuru Kenyatta lifted the nationwide dusk-to-dawn curfew on Wednesday during the Mashujaa Day celebrations.
However, CS Kagwe maintained that other Covid-19 protocols including handwashing and sanitisation at bars and restaurants are still in place.
He urged Kenyans to continue following the Ministry's protocols on safeguarding against coronavirus spread.
More than 15,000 bars and restaurants have been shut since the onset of the pandemic, rendering an estimated 90,000 workers jobless, according to PERAK.
Excise revenue levied on beer, wines and spirits reduced by 19 per cent in 2020, with the decline attributed to the impact of the restrictions on sale of alcohol compounded by the increase in excise taxes.
Last week, the Bar Hotels Liquor Traders Association had called for the lifting of the curfew to help revive the industry.
This, it said will translate to jobs and more revenue to the government.
According to government data collected in collaboration with the Kenya Private Sector Alliance, travel and tourism was the most hit last year where about 3.1 million jobs were affected.
This includes hotel employees, pubs and restaurants, tour operators, airlines, travel agents and their related suppliers and support services, a time when international travel came to a near stop costing Kenya a loss of about Sh130.9 billion in potential tourism revenues.
