The 24th Annual Supplement of the Laws of Kenya

For the first time in 28 years, the Office of the Attorney-General, working together with Kenya Law, has published the 24th Annual Supplement of the Laws of Kenya as Legal Notice No. 221 of 2023. This is in accordance with the Revision of the Laws Act. (Cap. 1).

The 24th Annual Supplement of the Laws of Kenya contains the revised edition of the Laws of Kenya for the period 1995-2022. This is pursuant to the powers of revision conferred on the Attorney-General by section 8(1) of the Revision of the Laws Act (Cap. 1), and delegated to the National Council for Law Reporting vide Legal Notice 29 of 2009.

Why the 24th Annual Supplement

The release of the 24th Annual Supplement is a significant milestone in the Republic of Kenya, as the Annual Supplement aligns the Laws of Kenya to the Bottom-Up Economic Transformative Agenda (BETA) 2022-2027 by ensuring access to information, which is a constitutional right under Article 35 of the Constitution of Kenya 2010.

The 24th Annual Supplement will serve as a key enabler of the Government priority areas in BETA by making law accessible to all. Specifically, it will enable the laws to reach a large audience and achieve the Government’s agenda on digitisation, which presents an opportunity to attract investors, both local and international.

In addition, access to public legal information in Kenya goes hand in hand with the concept of universal accessibility, which are both limited by, among other factors, the language and formats in which the information is presented online.

Taking note of the availability of the previous supplements in print version only, the availability of the 24th Annual Supplement in digital format will enable persons with visual impairment to access the laws, as user-friendly features have been incorporated.

The outcome of the release of the 24th Annual Supplement will be to empower Government at both the National and County levels, as well as the citizenry of Kenya and other critical international stakeholders, to have unhindered access to the updated laws of Kenya. This will greatly improve access to justice and facilitate the doing of business in the country.

Sensitisation sessions

As provided by Article 10 of the Constitution of Kenya and the relevant national values and principles of governance, the Office of the Attorney-General, through the Council, organised online sessions (webinars) from November 7 to 24, 2023, to sensitise government agencies on the contents of the 24th Annual Supplement of the Laws of Kenya.

The agencies sensitised include: The Office of the Attorney General and Department of Justice; Parliament (Clerks, National Assembly and Senate, and Legal teams); Law Society of Kenya; Office of Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP); Ministries and State Departments; Commissions and Independent Offices; County Governments; Faculties/Schools of Law, Universities; Kenya School of Law; Council of Legal Education; and the Judiciary.

Public participation forums were held in the following regions: Kisumu, Nakuru, Nyeri, Mombasa, and Nairobi.

Contents of the 24th Annual Supplement

1. The Constitution of Kenya, which has been featured for the first time since its promulgation in 2010;
2. Two hundred and fifty-nine (259) statutes that have been enacted or have come into force, together with subsidiary legislation, since the year 1995;
3. One hundred and twenty-six (126) revised editions of statutes, which have been substantially amended since the year 1995;
4. A new revised edition of the accumulative index, which provides an alphabetical tabulation of all Acts of the Laws of Kenya;
5. A table of contents, which features a list of East African Community Legislation; and
6. The Supplement to the Chronological Table (the tabulation of statutes that have been enacted since the last supplement; that is from the year 1995 to December 31, 2022, and results in the listing of statutes that were repealed pre-1995).

The 24th Annual Supplement of the Laws of Kenya is available in digital format on the e-citizen platform, the Kenya Law website www.kenyalaw.org, and a hard copy at the Government Press.

The information booklet is meanwhile available here.