The Standing Committee of the Provincial Synod of the Anglican Church of Kenya (ACK) has shared a Pastoral Message and Press Statement on 'The State of the Nation - A Wholesome Ecology for a Wholesome Nation'.
The statement includes themes impacting the province such as ecology, the economy, education, elections, human rights and health.
The statement followed a meeting at All-Saints’ Cathedral, Nairobi, from 22nd to 24th September 2026, where the Synod 'prayerfully reflected on the state of the Church and the nation'.
The statement is included in full below:
Standing Committee of the Provincial Synod of the Anglican Church of Kenya (ACK) Pastoral message and press statement on the state of the nation
Theme: A Wholesome Ecology for a Wholesome Nation
‘For the Lord will be your everlasting light, and your God will be your glory’ (Isaiah 60:19b). And
‘In him was life, and that life was the light of the whole world’ (John 1:4).
PREAMBLE
Meeting at the All-Saints’ Cathedral, Nairobi, from 22nd to 24th September 2026, the Standing Committee of the Provincial Synod of the Anglican Church of Kenya prayerfully reflected on the state of the Church and the nation.
We thank the Almighty God for His faithfulness as we strengthened measures for governance, accountability, stewardship, and mission within the Church. Yet we cannot gather in comfort while our nation groans in distress. The Church must never be a spectator when justice is wounded, and hope is fading. Silence in the face of suffering is not neutrality; it is complicity.
This year's theme, A Wholesome Ecology for a Wholesome Nation, reminds us that ecology is more than forests and rivers. It includes the moral, social, political and economic environment in which people live. A nation cannot be whole where corruption flourishes, truth is suppressed, institutions weaken and citizens lose hope.
We commend the Green Anglican Movement and all Dioceses, schools, parishes and communities that have planted over 13 million trees across the Province. Yet planting trees while uprooting justice is hypocrisy. Care for creation must be matched by care for people. A wholesome ecology demands a wholesome nation.
1.0 THE ECONOMY: THE CRY OF THE PEOPLE
While efforts to stabilise the economy are acknowledged, millions of Kenyans continue to struggle under the weight of unemployment, rising costs, failing businesses, and an increasing tax burden.
Taxation is necessary for nation-building, but taxation that impoverishes citizens while public resources are squandered becomes an instrument of injustice. Economic policy must be judged not only by statistics but by its impact on human dignity.
We call on the Government to review policies that deepen hardship and to ensure every public shilling is protected from theft, waste and abuse. Kenyans cannot be asked to sacrifice while corruption prospers. Accountability must replace impunity.
A government that demands sacrifice from its people must itself model discipline, integrity and transparency.
2.0 HUMAN DIGNITY AND FUNDAMENTAL RIGHTS
We express grave concern over reports of arbitrary arrests, enforced disappearances, extrajudicial killings, restrictions on fundamental freedoms, discrimination, and the denial of social and economic rights.
Every person bears the image of God and possesses inherent dignity that no authority may violate. Governments have a sacred duty to uphold the rule of law and guarantee equal protection for all.
We call for independent investigations, justice for victims, protection of human-rights defenders, journalists, and religious leaders, and urgent action to address the inequalities that perpetuate exclusion and poverty.
A nation cannot know peace when its citizens live in fear. Silence before injustice is incompatible with the Gospel.
3.0 ECOLOGY, EL NIÑO, AND THE SANCTITY OF LIFE
As the nation prepares for the anticipated El Niño rains and extreme weather conditions, we note the current efforts and preparedness from both National and County Governments.
Too often disasters become emergencies only after lives are lost. This pattern must end.
Drainage systems must be cleared, vulnerable infrastructure strengthened, emergency response mechanisms activated, and relief supplies positioned in advance. Schools, hospitals and settlements in high-risk areas must receive urgent protection.
Every preventable death is a failure of stewardship.
We urge families in flood- and landslide-prone areas to heed official warnings and relocate where necessary. We encourage churches to open their facilities and resources to vulnerable communities. Preparedness is not fear. Preparedness is wisdom.
4.0 THE PROPOSED BASIC EDUCATION BILL
The future of a nation is shaped in its classrooms. Education remains one of the greatest instruments of justice, opportunity, and national transformation. We are concerned by attempts to advance provisions of the proposed Basic Education Bill without sufficient consensus among stakeholders.
Legislation affecting millions of children must arise from broad consultation, public trust, and national consensus, not political expediency. As church, we are deeply concerned with any attempts to remove our sponsorship roles, rights and mandate.
We therefore call upon Parliament to pause any rushed process and facilitate meaningful engagement among teachers, parents, faith communities, education experts, sponsors and all relevant stakeholders.
Our children's future is too precious to be subjected to unnecessary division.
5.0 THE 2027 GENERAL ELECTIONS: A PROPHETIC WARNING
We are deeply troubled by the premature and increasingly toxic political atmosphere already taking hold across the nation.
Kenya must not return to the destructive cycles of ethnic mobilisation, political violence, voter manipulation, intimidation and division. We have seen where this road leads.
The resurgence of hooliganism, inflammatory rhetoric, ethnic polarisation and organised disruption of political activity should alarm every Kenyan of goodwill.
Particularly troubling is the exploitation of unemployed youth as instruments of political conflict. Young lives are being traded for political ambition.
We state unequivocally: this is evil and unacceptable.
We mourn those who have lost their lives in recent political confrontations. No office is worth the blood of a Kenyan. No ambition justifies violence.
We call upon political leaders to lower the temperature, reject incitement and embrace responsible leadership. We urge security agencies to act impartially and uphold the law without fear or favour. We also call upon the IEBC to undertake urgent preparations for elections that are free, fair, transparent, credible and verifiable. Peaceful elections are not achieved on polling day. They are built through justice, trust and preparation long before ballots are cast.
6.0 CORRUPTION: THE NATION'S DEEPEST WOUND
Corruption remains the greatest betrayal of the Kenyan people. It steals medicine from hospitals, books from schools, opportunities from the youth, food from families and dignity from public service. It mortgages the future while enriching a few.
We are disturbed by the continued misuse and theft of public resources across all levels of government. Kenyans are weary of investigations without convictions and scandals without consequences.
We therefore demand decisive action from anti-corruption agencies, investigative bodies and the Judiciary. Justice must not recognise political status, wealth or influence.
The Church likewise commits itself to the highest standards of integrity. Our pulpits shall not become platforms for political manipulation, reputation laundering or the display of suspicious wealth. The prophetic voice of the Church is not for sale.
7.0 THE HEALTH SECTOR CRISIS
We are deeply concerned by the continued deterioration of healthcare services across the country.
The prolonged nurses' strike and persistent challenges within the health sector have exposed systemic weaknesses and inflicted great suffering upon ordinary citizens.
Healthcare is not a privilege for the wealthy. It is a fundamental human right.
We call upon both National and County Governments to engage health workers urgently and constructively in resolving existing disputes. We further urge long-term reforms that restore dignity, professionalism, efficiency and public confidence in healthcare delivery. A nation that cannot care for its sick cannot claim to be healthy.
8.0 CONCLUSION: A CALL TO REPENTANCE AND RENEWAL
Kenya stands at a defining moment. We can persist in the paths of corruption, greed, violence, division and institutional decay, or we can choose justice, accountability, truth and national renewal.
The crisis before us is not merely political or economic. It is moral and spiritual. Nations do not collapse overnight; they decay when truth is abandoned, when justice is neglected, and when leaders place ambition above service.
Therefore, we call upon the Church, the Government, political leaders, institutions and all citizens to embrace repentance, integrity and responsibility before God and one another.
History will not judge us by our promises, slogans, or speeches, but by our courage to do what is right. May God heal our land, guide our leaders, strengthen our institutions and grant Kenya peace, justice and righteousness for generations to come.
For God and Country.
Signed on the Thursday, 24th, at the All-Saint’s Cathedral
The Most Rev. Dr. Jackson Ole Sapit,
Archbishop of Anglican Church of Kenya, Bishop of All Saints Cathedral Diocese, and Bishop-in-Ordinary to the Kenya Deference Forces
End of statement.
More information
Watch the Most Revd Jackson Ole Sapit, Primate and Archbishop of All Kenya, read the statement on 24 September.