Small businesses in Kenya will be mandated to register with the Kenya National Chamber of Commerce and Industrialization (KNCCI).
The registration will cost between Sh. 5,000 and Sh. 50,000. According to Trade cabinet secretary Moses Kuria, businesses that fail to register will be asked to shut down.
Kuria said that this mandatory registration is contained in a new proposal that is to be tabled before the cabinet for approval within the next 30 days.
“We are working on the National Chamber Bill which has to go to Cabinet within the next 30 days. We are going to have the Kenya Chamber that is truly reflective of Kenyan businesses,” said Kuria.
“In the Chamber Bill, it will be mandatory for every registered company in Kenya to be a member of the Chamber; it will not be an option, it will be mandatory.”
Sole proprietors pay Sh. 1,000 to join KNCCI plus Sh. 5,000 annual subscription fees.
Business associates and groups pay a subscription fee of Sh. 15,000 while partnerships pay Sh. 10,000. Small and medium enterprises pay Sh. 15,000, local public companies pay Sh. 50,000 while corporate membership fee is Sh. 100,000 annually.
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“Some people will start crying that this will increase the cost of doing business. If you think it is expensive to have to pay to be a member of the chamber, then be an employee,” said CS Kuria.
This is the latest in a series of financial decisions the government is taking against taxpayers band businesses that have left a sour taste in the mouths of Kenyans.