Motorbikes to cost Sh95,000 under President Ruto’s new plan

President William Ruto has announced fresh plans to make motorbikes even more affordable for ordinary Kenyans, particularly those in the boda boda sector.

While hosting national boda boda officials at State House, the President said he will table a proposal in Parliament to remove the remaining tax on motorbikes, a move he believes will further reduce their cost.

“Mimi nitaenda bunge niondoe ushuru ile bado iko, na hiyo ushuru pengine itapunguza bei ya hii bikibiki by another Sh10,000,” Ruto said.

(I will go to Parliament to remove the remaining tax, and that tax might lower the price of this motorbike by another Sh10,000)

He noted that recent tax adjustments have already halved the cost of motorbikes, with prices dropping from Sh190,000 to Sh95,000. 

Additionally, the initial deposit required has been reduced from Sh70,000 to Sh9,500, while daily payments have dropped from Sh500 to Sh180.

Ruto said the initiative is part of a wider government plan to empower hustlers by giving them easier access to the tools they need to earn a living.

“We want a system where ordinary citizens can own a boda boda with the little money they have,” he told the officials.

He said the government remains committed to supporting the boda boda sector, which plays a key role in job creation and youth empowerment.

Ruto also dismissed assertions that his administration has neglected boda boda riders and mama mbogas, the groups he often referred to as the foundation of his bottom-up economic model.

He reiterated that the interests of those at the bottom of the economic pyramid remain central to his government’s policies.

“Kuna watu wengi wananikejeli kwamba nilisahau watu wa bodaboda na mama mboga katika mpango yetu,” he said.

(There are many people mocking me, saying that I forgot the boda boda riders and vegetable vendors in our plan)

Ruto said he has consistently supported the boda boda community, noting that during the last general election, he placed both boda boda riders and mama mbogas at the heart of the national conversation.

“In the last election, I elevated bodaboda riders until they became central to the election agenda,” he said.

“There were two groups at the centre of it all, bodaboda and mama mboga. Who else, if not me, introduced them into the national conversation?”