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Elijah Ntongai, an editor at TUKO.co.ke, has over four years of financial, business, and technology research and reporting experience, providing insights into Kenyan, African, and global trends.

Cabinet Secretary for Cooperatives and Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises Development Wycliffe Oparanya said that the government has taken steps against loan defaulters.

Oparanya warned that Kenyans who have defaulted on their Hustler Fund loans will be locked out of future credit opportunities.

Speaking in Mombasa on Wednesday, September 10, 2025, Oparanya said banks will flag Hustler Fund defaulters, and they will not be able to access loans.

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According to the CS, the Hustler Fund was created to uplift ordinary citizens such as small traders, boda boda operators, and low-income earners, not to be misused.

Oparanya stressed that loan repayment is vital in building financial discipline and ensuring the fund remains sustainable for all Kenyans.

He noted that defaults prevent others from benefiting from the same support.

The Hustler Fund, launched in December 2022 by President William Ruto, was meant to expand affordable credit access to millions excluded from formal banking.

However, repayment challenges have persisted, forcing the government to tighten rules around defaults.

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The fund has faced recent calls for abolition from the Kenya Human Rights Commission (KHRC) as well as critical reports of mismanagement and fraud from the Auditor General.

Earlier on TUKO.co.ke, Ruto defended the Hustler Fund against the calls for its abolition. He argued that it has provided a lifeline to millions of low-income Kenyans.

The president said the fund has disbursed over KSh 72 billion in small loans ranging from KSh 500 to KSh 150,000.

Ruto added that the amounts, though modest, have enabled traders to restock and sustain their businesses.

He dismissed KHRC’s report, Failing the Hustlers, which termed the fund structurally unsound, unsustainable, and politically manipulated, saying the commission was out of touch with the daily struggles of ordinary Kenyans.

His remarks came amid concerns flagged by Auditor General Nancy Gathungu, who revealed that KSh 8 billion from the Hustler Fund was unaccounted for in the 2022/23 financial year, alongside other irregularities including loans issued to unborn children and minors under 18, understated interest income, and high non-performing loans.

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Source: TUKO.co.ke