Tough times ahead for job seekers as firms rule out new hires in 2026
Tough times ahead for job seekers as firms rule out new hires in 2026
Thousands of job seekers in Kenya face a tough year ahead, with a majority of non-bank firms in the country saying they will freeze additional hiring in 2026.
The Central Bank of Kenya’s November Market Perception Survey shows a majority, 58 per cent, of non-bank firms in the country do not expect to expand their workforce in 2026.
“Respondents reported mixed expectations about hiring prospects in 2026, with 74 per cent of banks and 42 per cent of non-bank private firms anticipating staff increases,” CBK said.
The survey targeted chief executives and senior officers of at least 400 private sector firms across the country.
Looking back at 2025, employment expectations were similarly mixed.
Banks largely anticipated increased hiring driven by branch expansion, talent acquisition, staff replacement and efforts to boost operational efficiency.
Non-bank firms, meanwhile, linked hiring to seasonal demand, efficiency gains and business growth.
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They flagged constraints such as reduced business volumes, declining profits, high operating costs, low consumer purchasing power, rising taxes and a growing reliance on ICT and technology to cut back on manual operations, factors that collectively restrained their job creation during the year.
The bleak 2026 hiring outlook comes amid Kenya’s already concerning unemployment crisis, particularly affecting young people.
According to the Federation of Kenyan Employers (FKE), youths aged 15–34, who form 35 per cent of the population, face an unemployment rate of 67 per cent, far higher than the national average of 12.7 per cent.
Additionally, data from the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (KNBS) shows that as many as 3.5 million young Kenyans are jobless and not in school.
Research firm, World Economic Forum (WEF), reckons that youth-led protests have recently swept Kenya and other African states such as Madagascar and Morocco, fuelled by limited opportunities and rising living costs.
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