Why so many people give up on tenders
Most Kenyans who try to get a government tender give up after 2 or 3 attempts. They see an advert, put together a few documents, submit, and never hear back.
The usual explanation is that tenders are only for connected people. Sometimes that is true. In most cases, though, the bid failed long before anyone looked at the price, because a document was missing, a page was unsigned or a certificate had expired.
I studied Purchasing and Supplies Management at Dedan Kimathi University, and one lesson from that course still holds: the tendering process rewards people who follow instructions exactly. This post walks you through what it actually takes.
How public procurement works in Kenya
Every government body that buys anything is called a procuring entity. That includes ministries, counties, state corporations, public universities and hospitals. They all follow one rulebook, the Public Procurement and Asset Disposal Act, 2015, and the regulator is the Public Procurement Regulatory Authority (PPRA).
Each entity plans its buying for the financial year, which runs from July to June. That is why many tenders come out between July and October, after budgets are approved.
How an entity buys depends on the amount and the situation:
- Open tender. Advertised publicly and open to anyone who qualifies. Most big contracts go this way.
- Request for quotation. Used for smaller amounts. Only suppliers already registered with that entity get invited, so registration matters a lot.
- Restricted tender. Only prequalified suppliers are invited to bid.
- Direct procurement. Used in special cases such as emergencies.
Many entities open a supplier registration window that covers 2 financial years. KRA’s current one runs for 2026 to 2027. Getting onto those lists is how small suppliers get invited for quotations.
The documents you need before you bid
You cannot bid as an individual with an idea. You need a registered business with its papers in order, and most of them expire, so you have to keep renewing them. These are the basics most tenders ask for:
- Business registration certificate or certificate of incorporation from the Business Registration Service on eCitizen
- CR12 for limited companies, showing the directors and shareholders
- KRA PIN certificate
- A valid Tax Compliance Certificate, which you renew every year, and which you only get if your returns are filed and your taxes are paid
- Single business permit from your county
- Licences for your line of work, such as NCA registration for construction or a professional body licence for consultants
- A company profile with your past work, reference letters and, for bigger tenders, audited accounts
- A business bank account
On top of these, every tender comes with its own forms: the form of tender, a confidential business questionnaire, self declaration forms and either a tender security or a tender securing declaration. Each one must be filled, signed and stamped exactly as the document says.
Where tenders are advertised
Since 1 July 2025, government buying runs through the Electronic Government Procurement system, known as e-GP. If you are not registered on egpkenya.go.ke, you cannot take part, and physical bids are no longer accepted.
Registration is free. The portal checks your details against your KRA and business registration records, so your company name and PIN must match exactly. If you get stuck, the Treasury has help desks at every Huduma Centre and an office at the Treasury Building in Nairobi, plus free supplier webinars on Thursdays.
Once registered, you will see open tenders on the portal. Many entities also post them on their own websites and in MyGov, the government pullout that runs in the newspapers.
Avoid anyone who asks you to pay for tender access or a guaranteed award. The adverts and the documents are free.
How bids are evaluated, and why most get disqualified
After the deadline, an evaluation committee goes through every bid in stages:
- Mandatory requirements. A pass or fail check on your documents. Miss one item and you are out, however good your price is.
- Technical evaluation. Your experience, staff, equipment and method are scored. Bids below the pass mark stop here.
- Financial evaluation. Only bids that passed the first 2 stages get their prices compared.
- Due diligence. The entity may confirm your references, your premises or your past contracts.
- Award. Every bidder gets a notification. If you feel you were treated unfairly, you have 14 days to file a complaint with the Public Procurement Administrative Review Board.
Most first timers fall at stage 1. The common reasons are an expired Tax Compliance Certificate, unsigned or unstamped pages, a missing CR12, documents uploaded in the wrong format, or the bid going in a few minutes after the deadline.
The tender document tells you exactly what will be checked. Read all of it, then go through your bid line by line against the list before you submit.
AGPO: the 30% set aside for youth, women and persons with disabilities
By law, every procuring entity must reserve at least 30% of its procurement for businesses owned by youth, women and persons with disabilities. This is the Access to Government Procurement Opportunities programme, or AGPO, and it is the easiest door in for a young business.
To qualify, according to the AGPO portal:
- Youth means 18 to 35 years, and at least 70% of the business must be owned by youth
- A women owned company needs at least 70% female shareholders and a majority of female directors
- Persons with disabilities need an NCPWD registration number
- In every case, the leadership of the business must be 100% from the target group
You apply online at agpo.go.ke or at any Huduma Centre, with your business registration, CR12 or partnership deed, KRA PIN, Tax Compliance Certificate and a business bank account with a bank reference letter.
The big advantage is that AGPO tenders usually let you sign a tender securing declaration instead of paying for a bank guarantee. Many people who qualify never apply, and that leaves the reserved tenders with fewer competitors.
The money side nobody tells you about
Winning the tender is half the work. You still have to deliver, and you usually deliver with your own money before the government pays you.
Some tenders ask for a tender security, a bank guarantee that costs you a fee even before you know if you will win. Once you get the LPO or contract, you buy the goods, pay your staff and transport everything to the entity. Then you invoice and wait.
The wait can be long. Money owed by national and county governments to suppliers stood at Sh465.87 billion in March 2026, and many suppliers wait more than a year to get paid. Some businesses have collapsed while waiting.
So before you bid, ask yourself whether your business can survive if this payment takes 6 months or more. Banks and microfinance lenders offer LPO and invoice financing, but read the interest carefully. Avoid putting all your savings or an expensive loan into a single tender.
Where to start
If you are new, start small. Register your business, keep your taxes clean, get onto e-GP, and apply for AGPO if you qualify. Then register as a supplier with 2 or 3 entities near you and go after small quotations first.
Every small contract you complete becomes a reference letter, and reference letters are what win the bigger tenders later.
Tenders are not for everyone, and they are not quick money. They are a business like any other, and the people who win are the ones who treat the paperwork as seriously as the work itself.
Elvis W.