04/06/2026
Political history has been so unkind to Daniel Arap Moi. People have been made to believe that he was Kenya’s worst president.
But when you look closely, many of the projects we rely on today were delivered during his era, and largely without the foreign debt.
The Nairobi–Mombasa A109 highway, for instance, was dualled in the late 1980s and early 1990s.
The Isiolo–Moyale A2 to Ethiopia was started in 1985 and completed in 1996, opening up Northern Kenya.
Other major roads from that era include Nairobi–Namanga,Nairobi–Narok–Kisii, and Garissa–Modogashe–Wajir.
He also expanded rural electrification and supported hydroelectric projects, laying the foundation for Kenya’s energy sector. These projects connected communities, boosted trade, and integrated marginalized areas into the national economy.
His footprint in education speaks for itself. 8-4-4 system of Education which we all envied was delivered by his administration
Nearly every county in Kenya today has a national school named after him (Moi Girls High Schools)
These schools, more than 50 across the country, were built through Harambee drives during his tenure.In the entire period of 24 years as the President, Daniel Moi borrowed less than 600 billion Kshs.
Moi prioritized healthcare expansion through the construction of Nyayo Wards in district hospitals, increasing bed capacity nationwide. He established the Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital in Eldoret, which remains one of Kenya’s premier medical facilities. Community-driven Harambee efforts also funded laboratories and radiology units, strengthening rural healthcare.
I have never understood why some people believe that Kibaki was the best despite hiking public debt from 600 billion to 2 trillion by the time he left office in 2013.
Moi’s record has been reduced to a caricature due to skewed historical narrative that was pushed by Mt Kenya elites to cast him as a villain.