Nairobi, February 23rd, 2026 — For years, the dream of owning a wine and spirits business in Nairobi often died at the doorstep of government offices, buried under mountains of paperwork and the shadow of “middlemen” demanding “facilitation fees.”

Following the successful consolidation of Nairobi City County licences under the Unified Business Permit (UBP), Nairobi City County recently unveiled LiquorPay, an end to end fully automated digital platform that continues to streamline liquor licensing, eliminating manual bureaucracy and delivering faster, more transparent services.

“We are making Nairobi a city of order and dignity, LiquorPay means no more queues, no more ‘missing files,’ and no more brokers. It is clean, it is fast, and it works. Transparency is the best incentive for investment,” noted Ms. Lydia Mathia, County Chief Officer, Business and Hustler Opportunities. “LiquorPay digital payment system has continued to eliminate hidden costs, allowing entrepreneurs to project their cash flows with 100% accuracy from day one.”

Ms Mathia projects that the platform could increase the number of legal wine and spirits business registration by 30%. “Through Governor Sakaja’s support, starting a wine and spirits shop or a restaurant in Nairobi just got as easy as sending an M-Pesa. Liquor pay has opened the “digital door” to thousands of aspiring entrepreneurs.”

Ms Mathia noted some of LiquorPay benefits include “Real-time registration, just go to nairobiservices.go.ke register and follow instructions which will lead you to instant payment via Mpesa paybill 4185885 (indicate invoice details), bypassing cash-handling risks and immediate issuance of 21 days provisional licence. Our officers will then conduct inspection of your premise within that time, once approved applicants will receive a full year Liquor Licence.”