Browsing: Kenya

• The cost of borrowing in Kenya has been going up since October last year, when it was at 10.50 per cent, before two consecutive raises.
• This means banks are likely to adjust their interest rates upwards, pushing the cost of borrowing beyond the reach of many.
• The majority of bank rates are currently above 20 per cent, amid a high default rate as banks struggle with Non-Performing Loans (NPLs).

Higher interest rates to raise the cost of borrowing in Kenya

The cost of borrowing in Kenya is set for yet another rise if banks are to factor in the latest Central Bank of Kenya increase in the base-lending rate.

The Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) has raised borrowing costs to highs last seen nearly 12 years ago, as it moves to try and contain the country’s inflation, which has started to pick.

On Tuesday, the Monetary Policy Committee, CBK’s top …

• Kenya’s distressed debt levels are pushing the country in a tight spot following years of successive borrowing, the Institute of Public Finance (IPF) says in its latest Macro Fiscal Analytical Snapshot Report.
• This is compounded by the inability of the private sector to create woefully insufficient jobs for millions of young people entering the job market annually.
• The report notes that since 2014, persistent high fiscal deficits have resulted in a swift escalation of public debt, now standing at 70 per cent of the GDP.

Kenya risks missing its economic growth targets in the medium-term as the country grapples with high debt distress and a deteriorating macroeconomic operating environment.

According to the Institute of Public Finance (IPF) in its latest Macro Fiscal Analytical Snapshot Report, the country finds itself in a tight spot following years of successive borrowing.

This is coupled with the inability of the private sector to create …

• Kenya-DRC and Tanzania-DRC Corridors have been identified as the key links that will drive East Africa trade.
• Within the Southern Africa region, higher integration will drive its share of total intra-Africa exports to a third by 2035.
• The MENA Region and the Middle East-East Africa corridors will also be substantial, with combined trade volume expected to reach almost USD200 billion by 2035.

Increased infrastructure interconnectivity by the African states has been identified as the key driver that will lead to success of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA). Kenya-DRC and Tanzania-DRC Corridors have been identified as the key links that will drive East Africa trade.

This comes after members after some member states expressed concern that the African trade system has failed to grow beyond the estimated 14–15 per cent over the last three to four years.

However, prospects are now positive that intra-Africa trade will grow 3.9 per …

• EAGC funding seeks to tackle trade challenges directly by removing trade impediments and building food export capacity in Kenya, Tanzania, and Uganda.
• This is across export value chains such as Maize, Beans, Millet, Sorghum, and Rice.
• Further, a core part of this is to increase the ability of grain producers to export both regionally and to the rest of the world.

Food export competitiveness in East Africa

Through USAID’s Economic Recovery and Reform Activity (ERRA) program, the United States government has awarded a three-year grant worth $2 million to the Eastern Africa Grain Council (EAGC).

The funding is geared towards strengthening the competitiveness of export-oriented staple food value chains in East Africa.

ERRA program is delivered by TradeMark Africa (TMA), with funding from Feed the Future. Via its five-year $75 million program, USAID and TMA are driving transformative trade and investment reforms in the East and Horn of Africa.

This …

• There is a Climate Funding gap of 40 billion dollars in blue carbon, yet no Kenyan firms are undertaking it.
• According to the World Bank, Kenya remains vulnerable to frequent climatic shocks that pose significant economic risks.
• The East African country has been gravely affected by changing weather patterns and a fall in disposable income available for necessities.

Despite their considerable potential, Kenya is foregoing billions of dollars in untapped climate financing opportunities. While many startups are entering this sector, industry experts argue that the current figure remains insufficient to combat climate change adequately.

Pangea Accelerator, an investment platform that provides funding for startups and small and medium enterprises (SMEs), says that the region needs to grow the number of startups, fully focusing on the environment. The Founder of Pangea, Jonas Tesfu, says that as a country, Kenya needs to have a lot of innovative businesses join climate change initiatives …

• Kenyan Shilling, which has been on a free-fall against the Dollar since mid-last year, fell to a record-low of 162 to the greenback with projections it could tumble further into the year.
• The unit has shed over 31 per cent of its value to the dollar year-to-date, as the Fed rate hikes in the US took a toll on currencies across the different markets.
• According to Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (KNBS), the Kenyan shilling also ceded ground against the Euro, Pound Sterling and the Japanese Yen.

The Kenyan government is facing a major headache as the country’s currency continues to fall against the US Dollar and other major currencies, hitting a new low this week.

Kenyan shilling, which has been on a free-fall against the dollar since mid-last year, fell to a record-low of 162 to the greenback with projections it could tumble even further this year.

The local …

• Rising volatility in Kenya’s Fixed Income Market derives from a combination of global and domestic factors.
• The yield curve soared fastest at the head and upper belly of the curve, rising by a cumulative 661bps on the three-month treasury bill.
• There is hope as it is anticipated, that a rebound in trading activity will happen in 2024.

The Kenyan Fixed Income Market displayed remarkable flexibility last year to experience one of the most rapid annual increases in yields resulting in a notable inversion of the effective yield curve.

According to financial experts, the rising volatility in the fixed income space derives from a combination of global and domestic factors.

On the external front, the rapid monetary policy tightening in 2022 and 2023 led investors to price-in bearish capital gain expectations for bonds.

On the domestic front, the rising concerns around fiscal sustainability indicators, coupled with an elevated inflationary regime in …

• The IMF loan to Kenya provides a much-needed shot in the arm as it navigates debt repayments, including the $2.0 billion Eurobond maturing in June this year.
• The country is expected to repay Eurobond debts of $1.96 billion in 2024, $880 million in 2027, and $978 million in 2028.
• Debt repayment has pressured Kenya as it consumes more of forex reserves and ordinary revenues, wiping out gains in diaspora remittances and tourism earnings.

The IMF loan to Kenya

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has approved a $684.7 million loan facility for Kenya, giving the East African country the much-needed support to navigate financial pressures amid a maturing Eurobond.

The funds are part of the $941.2 million Extended Fund Facility (EFF) and Extended Credit Facility (ECF) program approved in April 2021 and extended by 10 months in July 2023 to April 2025.

The first review under the 20-month Resilience and Sustainability …

• Safaricom recognized for its outstanding people strategy, work environment, talent acquisition, learning, diversity and inclusion, and employee well-being.
• The telco first received the Top Employer certification in 2022 and has retained it for three consecutive years.
• The certification comes just a few months after the company was ranked the third-best employer in Africa by an American business magazine, Forbes.

Kenya’s leading telecommunications company, Safaricom PLC, has, for the third consecutive year, received recognition as a top employer in both the country and across Africa.

The most recent certification for the year 2024, awarded by the Top Employers Institute (TEI), underscores the Nairobi Securities Exchange listed company’s HR policies and people practices.

The TEI program certifies organizations based on their participation and results in a comprehensive HR best practices survey covering 20 topics across six HR domains. These domains include people strategy, work environment, talent acquisition, learning, diversity and inclusion, and …

• International Finance Corporation targets specific projects in Côte d’Ivoire, Egypt, Kenya, Morocco, Senegal, and South Africa.
• IFC’s $30 million (Sh4.8 billion), own-account investment will help Africa Infrastructure Investment Fund 4 Partnership (AIIF4) exceed its final close target of $500 million (Sh80.4 billion).
• A pan-African infrastructure private equity firm called the Africa50 Infrastructure Acceleration firm I is raising up to $500 million for investments

Kenya is among six African countries that International Finance Corporation (IFC) will pump $30 million (about KSh4.8 billion) equity investment to fund works on essential infrastructure.

The fund, managed by Africa Infrastructure Investment Managers (AIIM), part of the Old Mutual Group, will support projects in the telecoms, renewable energy, and transport sectors across Africa but with a specific focus on Côte d’Ivoire, Egypt, Kenya, Morocco, Senegal, and South Africa.

In the telecoms sector, the fund will focus on financing data centers, fiber networks, and communications towers. In …