Principal Secretary for Culture and Heritage, Ms. Ummi Bashir, has urged the National Treasury to allocate more funds to the Kenya Copyright Board (KECOBO) to enhance the earnings of young creatives in the country. Appearing before the National Assembly Committee on Sports and Culture, Ms. Bashir lamented that underfunding has hindered KECOBO’s ability to ensure that artists receive fair compensation for their work.
One of the major challenges highlighted during the meeting, chaired by Webuye West MP Hon. Dan Wanyama, was the ongoing court battles between Collective Management Organizations (CMOs) and KECOBO. Ms. Bashir noted that these legal disputes have prevented artists from accessing substantial earnings despite their contributions to the creative industry. She further revealed that Ksh. 103.7 million collected through the Blank Tape Levy as of February 28 remains undistributed due to a pending court case.
Ms. Bashir also informed the Committee that KECOBO has not received development funds from the National Treasury, leaving its budget restricted to recurrent expenditure. She noted that despite requesting funds to implement an ICT system for monitoring, licensing, collecting, and distributing royalties, the allocation was not granted. To address these financial gaps, she urged the Committee to advocate for the reinstatement of Ksh. 25 million, which was cut from KECOBO’s budget in the first supplementary budget for the 2024/2025 financial year. Additionally, she requested an extra Ksh. 43 million to cover various operational costs, including rent, internet services, and copyright enforcement.
Highlighting KECOBO’s recent achievements, Ms. Bashir praised the success of the National Rights Registry system, which has registered 60,000 works from 10,000 rights holders. She encouraged artists to use the digital platform for copyright registration, eliminating the need for travel to Nairobi.
Furthermore, she reported that KECOBO has trained 5,000 creatives and 1,000 law enforcement officers in copyright management across various counties. She also announced the drafting of the Copyright Amendment Bill, 2025, aimed at aligning copyright laws with technological advancements.
Hon. Wanyama and Suba South MP Hon. Caroli Omondi expressed their support for the proposed legislative changes and the introduction of new technology to streamline royalty collection and distribution. They emphasized the need for legislative interventions to resolve legal disputes affecting the sector, ensuring creatives receive their rightful earnings.
