Renowned music executive turned governance advocate Amb. Dr. Yusuf Noah, popular as Refigah, has urged President William Ruto to reconsider his recent directive on foreign small-scale traders in Kenya, warning against blanket exclusions and advocating for smart regulation instead.
In an open letter addressed to the head of state, the former Grandpa Records CEO acknowledged the administration's intention to protect local entrepreneurs, but cautioned that outright bans risk undermining the nation's economic stability and moral standing.
"Kenya has never been just another country," Dr. Noah wrote, adding, "We are the cradle of Pan-Africanism in this region, a nation whose moral standing is built on hospitality, integration, and the timeless African philosophy of Ubuntu."
The veteran creative strategist proposed that Parliament establish an Alien Traders Identification and Taxation Framework.
Under this mechanism, foreign small-scale traders and hawkers would receive official identification, allowing the government to enhance security, dignify the informal sector, and expand the national tax base through the Kenya Revenue Authority.
"As a matter of economic principle, you cannot tax what you refuse to recognize," he emphasized.
He also highlighted the diplomatic risks tied to the East African Community (EAC) Common Market Protocol, which guarantees the free movement of people and services. He warned that penalizing foreign traders could trigger severe economic retaliation against thousands of Kenyans running small businesses in cities such as Juba, Kigali, Kampala, Dodoma, and Kinshasa.
"Any hostile policy we enact here will, by the laws of diplomacy, invite retaliation against our own citizens there," he noted, stressing that reciprocity in international relations is inevitable.
Addressing the drivers of cross-border migration, the advocate pointed out that regional trade movement stems from deep-seated political and economic instability in neighboring nations such as the DRC, South Sudan, and Somalia
He further cautioned against the dangerous slide toward xenophobia, drawing parallels to historical unrest elsewhere on the continent.
The open letter follows intense public debate sparked by President Ruto’s directive issued at State House, where he ordered an immediate administrative crackdown on foreign nationals operating small-scale retail and hawking enterprises, requiring affected businesses to cease operations.
The president argued that investor confidence was built to attract major capital, not foreign hawkers who compete directly with local micro-entrepreneurs at the bottom of the economic pyramid.
While the directive won applause from several domestic trader associations, it triggered widespread controversy regarding its diplomatic impact, lawfulness under regional trade treaties, and execution ahead of proposed parliamentary legislation.