The Land Commercialization Initiative (LCI) is a government-led initiative to unlock idle land owned by public institutions for large-scale commercial agricultural production. The LCI aims to transform Kenya’s underutilized agricultural land for enhanced food security by providing opportunities for private sector investment in the agricultural sector.
The LCI was approved through a cabinet memo issued in May of 2022, authorizing the Ministry responsible for Agriculture to implement commercialization of under-utilized public land for agricultural purposes. LCI is further guided by several other relevant national regulatory frameworks which are captured in the Investor Handbook. (refer to Annex 1 [under resources] of the Investor Handbook for details on the relevant sections of these laws.)
The LCI’s overarching objective is to unlock over 150,000 acres of sustainable irrigable land for commercial agricultural activities. However, the Ministry is commencing the Land Commercialization Initiative through a pilot program. The initial phase focuses on two selected sites. This pilot will provide valuable insights to inform the subsequent expansion of the initiative.
The Land Commercialization Initiative (LCI) prioritizes projects in farming, agroforestry, fisheries, livestock, and other agriculture-related sectors. Initiatives that enhance food security, encourage local community engagement, support mechanization, and promote climate adaptation are especially valued.
The LCI is open to Kenyan and foreign investors keen on accessing land for commercial agriculture activities that align with the national agenda for increased food security and economic growth. Investors for the LCI are expected to be agribusinesses, but may include qualified individuals, institutions, cooperatives, farmer groups, associations etc. This is not an exhaustive list, however, any individual or entity willing to allocate resources to invest in the LCI, and meets the general screen criteria, will be considered as a target investor for the initiative.
Yes, international investors with relevant experience and the necessary rights to operate in Kenya are encouraged to apply.
To participate in the LCI, investors must meet the following minimum requirements:
• Demonstrate financial capacity, experience, and expertise in delivering investment required.
• Demonstrate how prior similar investments were financed and evidencing how the financing arrangements were set up.
• Demonstrate deep experience in areas of the investment evidenced by having undertaken similar investments, especially in emerging economies.
• Demonstrate technical capacity, experience, and expertise to undertake planning, preparation of business case and risk management.
• Demonstrate experience around executing large agriculture projects that will generate value to the public/citizens in terms of food security, income generation and / or export value.
• Demonstrate capacity and experience on leveraging synergies and structuring financing and technical solutions to ensure the investment is delivered.
• Demonstrate evidence of good planning to enhance community linkages to the project.
• Demonstrate experience and adoption (or planned adoption) of sustainable green technologies, climate smart agriculture, and efficient use of power and water technologies.
Investors will be shortlisted based on their experience, capacity, and intended use of the land. Following the assessment of bids according to the criteria outlined in the Request for Expressions of Interest (RfEOI), and later Requests for Proposals (RfPs), land will be allocated to the selected investors based on the most favorable proposals and their alignment with government priorities.
The LCI itself does not offer specific incentives. However, mandated authorities in Kenya provide both fiscal and non-fiscal incentives applicable to all investors in the country. The Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) collaborates with other regulators and facilitators such as the Capital Market Authority (CMA) and Export Processing Zones Authority (EPZA) to implement fiscal (tax) incentives as outlined in the Income Tax Act, Laws of Kenya. The Kenya Investment Authority (KenInvest) assists investors in identifying relevant incentives based on their specific requirements and needs.
The LCI also involves a number of risks, including:
Investors can mitigate potential risks by:
Investors can raise grievances through the LCI Secretariat.
Investors can raise any type of grievance that they have with the LCI, including but not limited to:
The LCI Secretariat will investigate all grievances that are raised. The Secretariat will then take steps to address the grievances, such as:
Water and irrigation infrastructure availability varies on a site-by-site basis. Some pilot sites have access to water and irrigation infrastructure, while others do not. It is the responsibility of the investor to make any additional investments required for water access and irrigation. However, if the investor is providing machinery or infrastructure, fiscal incentives may be negotiated on a case-by-case basis, considering industry standards and best practices.
Similar to water and irrigation infrastructure, the availability of enabling infrastructure such as energy and roads varies from site to site. Some sites have access to these infrastructure components, while others do not. As with water access and irrigation, it is the investor’s responsibility to invest in any additional infrastructure needed. In certain cases where the investor provides machinery or infrastructure, fiscal incentives can be considered through individual negotiations, ensuring compliance with standards and best practices.
Investors are encouraged to propose business ideas, provided they are feasible within the framework of Kenya's laws and regulations. Additionally, the LCI welcomes privately initiated proposals from investors interested in strategic government priority value chains, such as fodder, potatoes, grains, livestock and poultry, edible oils, cotton, and vegetables. These proposals can receive support with land identification in these specific areas of interest.
Provisional assessments of the land have been completed, including soil analyses for acidity, potassium, calcium, and magnesium, which are available upon request. Investors seeking a more detailed evaluation may conduct their own assessments or consult experts from institutions like KARLO (https://www.kalro.org/) for technical support. Please note that the availability of site coordinates varies based on the specific land.
The government is committed to resolving potential competition for water resources between agricultural activities and power generation at designated sites before onboarding investors. Investors are also encouraged to consider alternatives, such as water harvesting or drilling, to supplement available water resources and enhance sustainability.
Yes, these will be provided to shortlisted bidders.
Site visits can be arranged for shortlisted bidders after the shortlisting process.
The private sector will have to come up with a strategy for community involvement
We anticipate that investors will arrange their own financing as needed.
Leasing terms differ among landowners; some may require investors to lease the entire advertised area, while others may permit leasing smaller portions, with a minimum of 50 acres. We recommend reviewing the site profiles carefully to understand the specific leasing requirements for each land site.
Bidders have the flexibility to negotiate the lease tenure within a timeframe of 5 to 30 years. The final decision will be based on the legal tenure established by the landowners.
The conditions for termination will be outlined in the lease agreement.
Guarantees will not be available within the scope of this lease procurement process.
Investors are encouraged to refer to the active EOIs for a complete list of requirements.
A minimum of three firms will be shortlisted for each site. If none or only one bidder submits a bid for the entire site, the government reserves the right to select more than three bidders for that site.
Bidders are required to have demonstrated experience in the management and operation of large-scale agricultural sites.
This will be based on the following criteria:
The proposed business idea must be feasible within the framework of Kenya's laws and regulations.
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