Kenya faces Sh453m bill for DRC property overhaul

By  Constant Munda

Correspondent

Nation Media Group

Kenya faces a Sh452.9 million bill to complete the rehabilitation and redevelopment of government-owned properties in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), including the diplomatic mission’s office vandalised during violent protests in January 2025.

The State Department for Foreign Affairs says Sh147.1 million on the Sh600 million project by last June, representing 24.5 per cent completion, according to its latest budgetary review.

The government spent Sh120 million on repairing and upgrading properties in Kinshasa in the year ended June, the report states, while Sh27.1 million was absorbed the previous year.

“The Mission was attacked during the recent political riots in the host country where the Chancery was vandalised. Rehabilitation of the Chancery, estimated at Sh120 million, is ongoing,” the Foreign Affairs wrote in the report to the National Treasury.

An additional Sh150 million has been allocated to diplomatic properties in DRC in the current fiscal year ending June 2027 for new staff houses and chancery renovations, rising to proposed Sh250 million in the year starting July.

The staff houses are intended to reduce rental expenses, while the additional funding will support renovation of the chancery.

The allocations signal a multi-year investment in restoring Kenya’s diplomatic facilities and lowering operating costs in Kinshasa, by redeveloping the ambassador’s residence and staff houses, alongside renovating the chancery.

The planned spending, however, comes after Nairobi indicated that Kinshasa would assess the damage caused by the January 2025 attack and compensate the Kenyan government for losses suffered at its embassy.

“These unfortunate attacks happened in the full glare of DRC security officers who took no action to mitigate the situation. The DRC Foreign Minister has committed to assess and compensate the Kenyan government for the damages on the embassy,” Prime Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi said at the time in a statement following the attack.

The ministry’s latest budgetary review does not indicate whether the promised compensation has been paid, agreed upon or factored into the ongoing rehabilitation works, leaving unclear whether Kenya will recover any of the costs from the Congolese government.

The government owns four properties in the DRC, three of which were ‘dilapidated and condemned’ even before the attack on the chancery.

The investment comes amid expanding trade with the DRC after Africa’s second-largest country by area joined the EAC trading bloc in July 2022. Kenyan exports rose to Sh37.08 billion in 2025 from Sh29.83 billion a year earlier, according to Kenya National Bureau of Statistics data, making it the fourth-largest African export market last year after Uganda, Tanzania and Rwanda.

The January 2025 attack followed protests against the seizure of Goma, a major city in eastern DRC, by Rwanda-backed M23 rebels. Kenya’s embassy was among several foreign missions attacked in Kinshasa, alongside those of Uganda, Rwanda, South Africa and the United States.

It occurred during a period of strained relations between Nairobi and Kinshasa, partly linked to Kenya’s diplomatic engagement with groups opposed by the Congolese government and its close ties with Rwanda.

Kinshasa repeatedly declined to accredit Kenya’s designated ambassadors, prolonging a standoff over diplomatic representation. Kenya’s nominee appointed in 2024 had yet to present his credentials when the attacks occurred.

President William Ruto subsequently appointed engineer Peter Tum, who took office in May 2025, after the prolonged dispute over Kenya’s substantive representation in Kinshasa.

Relations have also been affected by the DRC’s accusations that Rwanda supports M23 amid the conflict in eastern Congo. President Ruto’s close relationship with Rwandan President Paul Kagame has added sensitivity to Nairobi’s dealings with Kinshasa.

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