Browsing: Debt in Kenya

debt obligations in Kenya
  • Kenya’s rising debt obligations have failed to reduce the debt that currently stands at about $82.2 billion.
  • Service costs went up from 58% after the government paid $2 billion Eurobond.
  • Sovereign bond-holders accounted for $6.6 billion of the external public debt stock.

The National Treasury has laid bare the pain awaiting Kenyans in repaying loans borrowed from external lenders and domestically. Fresh data tabled in Parliament reveals that taxpayers will dig deeper in their pockets in the next financial years to repay loan obligations.

Details show that for every $0.78) Sh100 the government collects, $0.53 (Sh68) goes to servicing the $82.2 billion (Sh10.6 trillion) debt pile reported as of June 30, 2024. The treasury revealed that the country’s debt stock increased by $2.3 billion (Sh303 billion) compared in the year ended June 2024 compared to a year ealier. Currently, Kenya’s debt stock is projected to hit $100.7 billion (Sh13 trillion) …

Debts are quite effective economic tools when used correctly. However, debts have been seen to hold people and nations accountable over time and space and sometimes push developing countries to the edge of economic crisis. 

In the case of Africa, debt has evolved to become a phenomenon that nations such as South Africa, Sudan, Tanzania and Zambia battle with every inch of their economic prowess. 

The African Report argued that the number of African countries at risk of debt distress has doubled since the COVID-19 pandemic, but only three of them have opted for debt restructuring.

  • South Africa has been hit with most brutal power outages which hurt the economy significantly
  • Recently, the finance ministry of South Africa stated that it will transfer state energy provide Eskom to government to empower the utility performance
  • South Africa’s debts will peak at just over 71 per cent of gross domestic product this
  • The government of Kenya to implement a raft of measures to address the current high debt levels in Kenya and the fiscal challenges the country continues to face

  • A high fiscal deficit because of higher expenditure than revenue collections is the primary driver of the increased borrowing

  • The government should channel efforts towards strengthening the Capital Markets structure to ease the pooling of funds by investors to undertake development projects

Economic analysts have urged the government of Kenya to implement a raft of measures to address the current high debt levels in Kenya and the fiscal challenges the country continues to face.

The analysts from Cytonn Investments said the government should work on strategies to reduce the economic consequences of high debt levels and increased risk of debt distress.

The analysts said they commend the government on the continuous efforts to boost revenue collection but believe a lot needs to …