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CEOs forecast increased hiring in expansion drive
An equal number of executives in the transport sector said they will probably hire more workers, but half of the companies still don’t think they will add employee numbers in 2026.
Corporate executives plan to hire more workers and upskill their current workforce this year to support expansions, a new survey by the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) has disclosed.
At least 89 percent of bank Chief Executive Officers (CEOs) and 56 percent of the executives in other sectors of the economy indicated plans to increase the number of workers they had last year, sending positive signals for the year ahead.
In the survey conducted in January, 43 percent of bank CEOs expressed strong confidence to hire more workers this year while another 46 percent indicated the possibility of adding the staff numbers.
In the non-banking sector, the survey shows, at least 11 percent of the executives have guaranteed adding staff numbers, while an additional 45 percent have indicated the likelihood.
“New hires are expected to support planned business growth and expansion, as well as upskill and reskill the existing workforce to manage increased workloads, in addition to meeting ongoing strategic replacement needs,” the CBK’s January 2026 Market Perceptions Survey says.
The survey was administered on CEOs of 227 private companies, comprising 36 commercial banks, 13 micro-finance banks, and 178 firms across agriculture, trade, construction, transport, tourism, and manufacturing sectors.
The transport sector had the most CEOs with the highest confidence of raising staff numbers this year, with at least 25 percent indicating that they “definitely will” hire more workers.
An equal number of executives in the transport sector said they will probably hire more workers, but half of the companies still don’t think they will add employee numbers in 2026.
“Respondents were asked whether they expected to increase their number of employees in 2026 relative to 2025. Survey findings revealed that both bank and non-bank firms anticipate higher hiring in 2026 relative to 2025,” the CBK survey said.
The tourism sector also has 16 percent of the executives confident they will add employee numbers, with 42 percent expressing that possibility. A total of 42 percent of the companies have no plans to hire more.
The survey classified executives' plans to add new workers in 2026 as compared to last year based on the strength of their confidence, ranking them from “definitely will”, “probably will”, “probably won’t”, and “definitely won’t”.
Overall, it is the manufacturing sector where plans to hire more workers appear highest, with a total of 65 percent of executives saying they “definitely will” or “probably will” hire more workers.
This is followed by the agriculture sector, where 64 percent of CEOs say they also “definitely will” or “probably will” add workers.
The transport and construction sectors tied with half of their CEOs responding positively to the hiring prospects, though no company executive in the construction sector said they “definitely will” add worker numbers.
The Central Bank indicated that executives have raised concerns over the need to ensure their current workforce is delivering to the maximum, amid low activity and falling profits.
“Nevertheless, respondents highlighted risks to employment expectations, including the need to manage costs by improving productivity with the existing workforce, low business activity and profitability,” the survey stated.
The Stanbic Bank Kenya Purchasing Managers Index (PMI) published in January showed that Kenyan firms ended 2025 with the strongest hiring momentum in more than six years as sustained demand pushed companies to expand employment at a pace last seen before the Covid-19 pandemic.
The index showed that private sector employment expanded in December at the fastest rate since November 2019, signalling continued improvement in business conditions.
The increase followed renewed hiring in November, when firms resumed recruitment after a near-freeze in October, lifting staff numbers at a time businesses braced for the recurring heightened festive-linked activity.
In January, the headline PMI dipped slightly to 53.7 from November’s four-year high of 55.0, but remained firmly above the 50-point mark signalling continued expansion in private sector activity.
A reading above 50 signifies an improvement in private sector activity compared to the previous month.
