Women-owned businesses in Kenya are the largest beneficiaries of government procurement opportunities, yet they continue to miss out on billions of shillings due to structural and financial barriers.

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Latest data from the Public Procurement Regulatory Authority (PPRA) and the National Treasury shows that women secured contracts worth Sh33.1 billion in the financial year ending June 2025 .

This represents 58.3 per cent of the total Sh56.8 billion awarded under the Access to Government Procurement Opportunities (AGPO) programme—making women the single largest beneficiary group.

Despite this milestone, experts say the figures conceal a significant gap. According to UN Women Kenya, women are only accessing 18.1 per cent of the total AGPO opportunities available.

The figure is far below the 30 per cent reservation mandated under the Public Procurement and Asset Disposal Act, 2015.

The disparity has been attributed to limited access to financing tools, capacity constraints, and low representation in decision-making roles.

At the third Women in Procurement and Supply Chain Management Conference held in Mombasa on Monday, industry leaders called for urgent action to address the imbalance.

The event, organised by the Kenya Institute of Supplies Management (KISM), noted that while women make up over half of the procurement workforce, fewer than 20 per cent hold senior leadership or boardroom positions.

KISM chairperson Jeniffer Cirindi Njiru urged stakeholders to move beyond dialogue and implement structured systems to support women’s advancement in procurement.

It is this gap that the upcoming SHEconomy Summit 2026 seeks to address.

The summit, convened by Recolted Limited founder and CEO Betty Karimi will take place between May 28 and 29 at the Kenya College of Insurance in South C, Nairobi. Organisers expect more than 1,000 women entrepreneurs, contractors, and SMEs from all the 47 counties.

The forum will focus on bridging the financing gap that prevents many women-led enterprises from converting tender opportunities into successful contracts. Recolte Limited specialises in trade finance solutions such as bid bonds, performance guarantees, and invoice discounting—tools often out of reach for smaller businesses.

Speaking at Radisson Blu Hotel Nairobi ahead of the summit, Karimi described the initiative as an economic intervention rather than a social campaign.

“We are standing at the edge of a defining economic shift—not a gender conversation, but an economic revolution,” she said.

The two-day event will feature procurement masterclasses, financing sessions, a vendor exhibition, and the SHEconomy Awards Gala recognising excellence in supply chain and procurement.

The summit is expected to play a critical role in closing the persistent gap between policy and practice, unlocking billions in untapped opportunities for women-led businesses.