Ruto announces Sh70bn cement plant for Kitui

President William Ruto has announced plans to launch a Sh70 billion cement and clinker factory in Ngaaie, Mwingi North Constituency, Kitui County, on Tuesday, according to AllAfrica: Kenya. The same report says the factory is being developed by the Devki Group and is expected to use locally sourced materials to manufacture clinker, a key raw material in cement production.

The announcement is a launch date, not a construction milestone. The report records no agreement, no financing package, no funder, no capacity figure in tonnes, no land allocation and no timeline for building or commissioning the plant. It does not name a contractor or consultant. The Sh70 billion is the figure given in the announcement; the report does not present it as money committed, spent or raised.

AllAfrica: Kenya reported the project is "expected to create 4,000 jobs" and boost economic activity in the region. The report gives no basis or source for that forecast.

Ruto, speaking at Tseikuru grounds on Monday, said the investment would provide employment opportunities for young people and stimulate local trade, according to the report. He urged young people to seek work at the factory from the following day. "I tell young people looking for jobs that we are launching the cement factory tomorrow so that they can seek employment opportunities," he said, as quoted by AllAfrica: Kenya.

Other projects launched on the same tour

The report places the cement announcement alongside two other launches in Mwingi North Constituency.

• Student hostels: Ruto launched construction of hostels at Tseikuru National Polytechnic in Kora, a KSh145 million project accommodating 340 students, according to the report. The institution currently has a student population of approximately 1,600.
• Road: Ruto launched construction of the 55-kilometre Twimiwa-Tseikuru-Usweni road, a KSh5 billion project the report says is expected to improve connectivity.

No completion dates are given for either. The KSh145 million and KSh5 billion are announced project values, not expenditure.

According to the report, Ruto also directed the contractor on the road, who is not named, to include tarmacking of a three-kilometre stretch leading to the home of Wiper Democratic Movement leader Kalonzo Musyoka. The report does not say whether that work falls within the contract scope or whether it changes the cost.

Claims made at the grounds

The report attributes several statements to the President. Ruto warned that the government would act against shylocks, brokers and those extorting investors for bribes and shareholding: "Their days are over," he said, as quoted. He said some investors had previously withdrawn from Kenya because of demands for bribes and stakes in their businesses. He also said the government would protect investors and make Kenya "the best destination for investments." These are political claims; the report offers no supporting figures or cases.

Ruto said the road project would address historical disparities in infrastructure development: "One kilometre at a time, we are bridging the economic divide caused by historical marginalisation in the sharing of national resources." Labour Cabinet Secretary Alfred Mutua and several MPs, who are not named, accompanied the President, according to the report.

The report describes the projects as part of government efforts to strengthen technical education; that framing is not attached to the cement factory in the account.