NAIROBI, Kenya — Safina Party leader and 2027 presidential hopeful Jimi Wanjigi has pledged to make the eradication of poverty his top priority if elected President, arguing that poverty is at the root of many of Kenya’s longstanding social and economic challenges.
Wanjigi said Kenya had made progress in sectors such as education and healthcare since gaining independence but had failed to resolve what he described as the country’s most fundamental problem — poverty.
Speaking during an interview with Thee Alfa House on YouTube, the businessman-turned-politician said his main motivation for seeking the presidency was to improve the economic circumstances of ordinary Kenyans.
“I will remove poverty,” Wanjigi said when asked why he wants to become President.
He linked his proposed agenda to the priorities identified by Kenya’s first President, Jomo Kenyatta, at independence, saying poverty, health and education remained unresolved challenges more than six decades later.
“The whole goal of this is that there are three things that have eluded us since independence. When we got independence, Jomo Kenyatta was very good at anchoring three problems; poverty, health, and education. 63 years later, are we still not in those challenges?”
Wanjigi says poverty drives other challenges
Wanjigi argued that reducing poverty would have a wider impact on other social problems, including access to healthcare and education.
He said improving household incomes and economic opportunities would make it easier for the country to address challenges in other sectors.
“Mine is to remove poverty; because once you remove poverty, you remove all the others,” he said.
The Safina leader’s argument places economic transformation at the centre of his political platform, with poverty reduction presented as the foundation for improvements in other areas of public welfare.
Wanjigi cites high poverty levels
Wanjigi also cited poverty figures that he said demonstrate the scale of the challenge facing Kenya more than 60 years after independence.
According to the presidential hopeful, about 32 million Kenyans are classified as poor, while approximately 12 million experience multidimensional poverty associated with deficiencies in areas such as education and health.
He said other Kenyans experience food poverty and absolute poverty, putting the overall proportion of the population living in poverty at about 60 per cent.
“That is 60pc of our population; six out of every 10 are called poor. What nation is that 63 years after independence?” he posed.
The figures cited by Wanjigi were not accompanied by a detailed source during the interview and should therefore be understood as figures he presented in making his political argument.
‘Capital’ is key to economic transformation
Wanjigi rejected the idea that Kenya’s economic struggles are primarily the result of a lack of education, talent or hard work among its citizens.
He argued that Kenya has a sizeable pool of educated and hardworking people, but insufficient access to capital continues to constrain economic growth and individual prosperity.
“There’s one basic reason why some nations are poor and others are not; capital,” Wanjigi said.
He questioned why Kenya continues to experience widespread economic hardship despite what he described as its educated population, entrepreneurial potential and relative peace and stability.
“Why are we such a struggling nation? Many of us have education, we have potential, we’re hardworking as Kenyans, we’re a united and peaceful nation – but what is this state that becomes something permanent to us that we are always listening to promises that we will come out of poverty but it doesn’t go away?” he posed.
