Ken Ruto
Principal Lead, Flux · Nairobi, Kenya
I studied computer science at Haverford College in Pennsylvania. Then I repatriated to Nairobi to build the software I wish Africa's institutions already had.
That conviction became Flux Water, then AccessWASH, then BungeConnect, then Flux — a research and technology lab working across civic infrastructure, water and sanitation, open finance, and community health.
My work is predicated on one observation: the technology that could equip Africa's public institutions already exists. The missing layer is someone willing to do the translation work — rigorously, specifically, from inside the context.
I write about this. I build for it. I try to publish the evidence either way.
Currently
BungeConnect
The operating system for Kenya's parliamentary offices
In DevelopmentAnswerTab
Ask about the thing in front of you, without leaving it. Being rebuilt as a standalone reader.
Coming SoonPesaRails
Stablecoin-native open finance rails. Kill the fees. Keep the money.
LiveAccessWASH
The enterprise operating system for African water utilities
In DevelopmentKwaGround
Constituency-scale measurement: interviews in, weighted findings out
Working papers
WP44 · LatestThe Interface Tax: What a 1990s Signalling Protocol Still Costs Kenya, in Hours
USSD carries the large majority of Kenya’s mobile-money transactions for good economic reasons — and nobody has added up the aggregate human time that costs. A sourced, transparent low/mid/high estimate, built on Herd and Moynihan’s administrative-burden framework.
Get in touch
Open to research collaborations, bespoke software commissions, speaking, and advisory conversations.