Electricity generating company KenGen was put on the spot over what Members of Parliament (MPs) described as discrimination against persons living with disabilities (PLWDs) during employment.
Appearing before the National Assembly’s committee on cohesion and equal opportunity on Tuesday, June 3, 2025, KenGen Managing Director Peter Njenga was put to task to explain why the company had failed to comply with the requirement that at least five per cent of the total workforce should represent PWDs.
During the grilling, Njenga revealed that only 51 out of a total of 2,437 employees at KenGen were persons living with disabilities.
“KenGen has not complied with the legal requirement that at least five per cent of staff be PLWDs. We currently stand at only two per cent,” Njenga told the committee chaired by Mandera West MP Yussuf Haji.
PLWDs applications
“This law has been in effect for nearly 15 years. The reasons given for non-compliance are no longer acceptable,” Haji stated. “You have not even reached half of the minimum threshold.”
In his defence, Njenga indicated that while the company was keen on achieving the required threshold, people living with disabilities have been shying away from applying for roles at KenGen.
However, the MPs would take none of it, noting that the explanation that PLWDs were not applying for advertised positions was untenable.
“This explanation is no longer tenable. KenGen has done very little to ensure that job advertisements are accessible to PLWDs,” Nyeri Town MP Duncan Mathenge said.
Nakuru Woman Representative Liza Chelule emphasised the role of MPs and local networks in facilitating employment for PLWDs.
“We have access to data on PLWDs and live among them. There are numerous organisations affiliated with them that could help connect them with job opportunities. KenGen should actively engage with these groups,” Chelule remarked.
To improve compliance
The KenGen MD assured the committee of the company’s commitment to improving compliance with legal provisions on diversity and inclusion.
“We are putting measures in place to ensure full compliance with the law on both ethnic diversity and equal employment opportunities,” Njenga affirmed.
“We are committed to working with this Committee to progressively meet these requirements.”
The electricity generating company is one of the profit-making agencies of the government, which employs thousands of Kenyans across its various programmes and departments.
In 2024, KenGen posted a Ksh6.8 billion profit from its operations, which was a 35 per cent surge due to its geothermal plants in the country.
