The Kenyan government is finalizing negotiations for a new salary increment for civil servants, a move intended to address the rising cost of living and harmonize public sector remuneration.
These discussions, currently in their concluding stages, involve the Salaries and Remuneration Commission (SRC) and various public service stakeholders. The process is part of the fourth remuneration review cycle, which covers the period from 2025/2026 to 2028/2029.
The proposed adjustments follow the SRC’s approval of a revised salary and leave allowance structure for national government employees.
According to official commission circulars, the initial phase of this review cycle is projected to cost approximately 2.065 billion Kenyan Shillings for the current financial year.
A significant component of the new framework includes the reorganization of house allowances into three distinct clusters based on regional living costs, with employees in Nairobi set to receive the highest rates.
In addition to basic salary increments, the government has introduced a Salary Market Adjustment (SMA). This mechanism consolidates several previous benefits—including entertainment, domestic servant, and extraneous allowances—into a single payment.
The SRC has stated that while the broad framework is established, specific terms for unionizable staff are being finalized through the Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) process to ensure wages remain competitive and sustainable.
Public Service Cabinet Secretary Geoffrey Ruku recently confirmed that the upcoming salary increases are scheduled to take effect on July 1, 2026.
Furthermore, the National Assembly has approved new regulations to streamline these payments and eliminate arbitrary salary decisions.
As the final technical details are concluded, the government maintains that these reforms are essential for fiscal discipline and the modernization of the public service compensation system