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State plans Sh100m influencers budget to push its narratives
The government wants to formalise the use of influencers and bloggers to shape online narratives as social media becomes a central battleground for public opinion.
The government plans to spend up to Sh100 million annually to pay social media influencers and bloggers to promote government narratives online, aiming to improve its image and boost public awareness of its programmes.
The Ministry of Information, Communication, and the Digital Economy (MICDE) is seeking the allocation to fund its objective of “positively profiling the government brand,” in collaboration with the Presidential Communication Service and the Office of the Government Spokesperson.
The move comes amid growing dissent on social media, with many recent protests organised online, prompting the State to turn what has been a headache into an opportunity to engage citizens.
The proposals are outlined in the National Communication Strategy, which notes that “with the rise of digital media, the government has found it increasingly difficult to control information as multiple voices have emerged.”
“The strategy is designed to enhance synergy and coherence across all communication efforts while fostering a citizen-centric culture in public discourse, as well as strengthening the government’s brand image,” MICDE states in the recently published document.
It also aims to “leverage the potential of diverse media platforms and communication assets” for the government’s advantage, including enlisting social media influencers and bloggers to push government narratives.
Under the plan, part of the budget will pay influencers a stipend, while the rest will provide tools and resources to help them fight misinformation in their communities and participate in regular engagement events with State officials.
The initial proposal targets 10 macro-influencers, who would receive Sh100,000 quarterly, and 20 micro-influencers, earning Sh50,000 quarterly, based on the spending estimates outlined in the document. Their duties include “creating hashtags and promoting them on social media.”
Micro-influencers typically have between 10,000 and 100,000 followers, while macro-influencers have more than 100,000 and can reach millions.
Kenya currently has one of Africa’s most vibrant influencer economies, with marketers increasingly using them to promote products, events and narratives. In 2025, marketers reportedly paid influencers a total of Sh645 million for advertising deals, according to data firm Statista.
While this is the first time the use of influencers has been officially documented and budgeted by the government, the practice itself is not new.
A report by Amnesty International last year revealed that the government had paid influencers to drown protest hashtags and push pro-government messaging, while also intimidating those viewed as dissenters.
In 2021, Mozilla also reported that influencers were paid to dilute criticism and shape online debate following the Pandora Papers leak, which exposed business dealings by the Kenyatta family abroad.
Across Africa, governments are known to employ ‘keyboard warriors’ to shape public discourse and quell online dissent, but the practice is widely condemned by human and digital rights advocates.
