President William Ruto has announced that Kenya will manufacture leather shoes for all of its school-going children. The government wants local footwear makers to supply schools across the country, giving the leather sector a ready market.
The President spoke at the Kenyatta International Convention Centre (KICC) in Nairobi on Wednesday 4 November 2026.
What the President said
President Ruto said the government is taking its support for local industry a step further. He told manufacturers the aim is for them to make all the shoes for the country’s 14 million school-going children.
He presented the plan as part of a wider drive to grow the leather industry and create jobs for young people. He said the government is bringing manufacturing closer to the people rather than concentrating it in Nairobi, and that the plan is to devolve the whole manufacturing ecosystem so that every county benefits.
Investment in the leather sector
The government has put KSh 5.8 billion into the Kenya Leather Industrial Park at Kenani in Machakos County. Deputy President Kithure Kindiki unveiled the park on 2 September, and it has modern facilities for processing and manufacturing.
The school shoes plan follows earlier directives on locally made footwear for the security services:
- In June, the President ordered security agencies to buy boots made in Kenya.
- In October, he told a town hall at Jamhuri Park that military and police boots are now fully made locally, and that their importation is banned.
He now wants the same approach applied to school shoes. He said the 14 million learners are a large market for local shoemakers.
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Kenya’s livestock and leather trade figures
The President’s plan builds on Kenya’s large livestock population. By the World Bank’s and the Kenya Leather Development Council’s figures, Kenya has Africa’s third-largest livestock population. Despite this, Kenya’s share of the global leather trade is small.
| Indicator | Figure |
|---|---|
| Global ranking by livestock herd size | 11th, with about 80 million animals |
| Ranking in Africa by livestock population | 3rd |
| Leather apparel exports | 87th of 208 countries, valued at KSh 68 million (USD 527,000) |
| Leather apparel imports | 101st of 223 importers, at KSh 285 million (USD 2.2 million) |