Nairobi motorists will soon enjoy free parking on weekends following an assurance from Governor Johnson Sakaja.
The governor said that scrapping weekend parking fees will encourage businesses to open over the weekends. He made the promise during the presentation of Finance Bill 2023 by all his county chief officers.
“When the Finance Bill 2023 is approved by the county assembly, I propose not to charge weekend parking fees in Nairobi.”
“This will encourage business establishments to open during the weekend and also provide an opportunity for Nairobi residents to support businesses and accord them an opportunity to transact on the weekends,” Mr Sakaja said.
The governor acknowledged harsh economic times for the city residents and companies.
“I know times are hard … We also want to attract more visitors to the CBD during weekends.”
He also said that his administration will ensure that there is security provision round the clock.
“Other leading cities in the world are very vibrant during the weekends. Nairobi should adopt the same vibrancy as this will ensure growth.”
Recently, county Chief Officer for Revenue Collection Wilson Gakuya led other chief officers and county staff to the launch of the validation of the Finance Bill 2023.
The provisions of the Act will help the county raise its own source of revenue to meet county budgetary expenditure.
This move is, however, expected to cause mixed reactions among Nairobi County Assembly members, bearing in mind that parking fees is among the main sources of revenue for the county.
On Sunday, the governor said while attending a church service the county surpassed its target in the first three months compared to last year.
“I’m proud to say with a lot of confidence that our county revenue collection for the last three months shot up by Sh673 million as compared to last year. We are hoping to record a steady increment in revenue collection moving forward.”
The 2023 County Revenue Collection Report indicates that Nairobi collected Sh1.42 billion in January, Sh1.3 billion in February and Sh1.78 billion in March.
Other main sources of revenue for the county include land rates, single business permits, fire inspection, house and stall rent, and food handlers, among others.
