National Treasury Cabinet Secretary (CS), John Mbadi, has assured Kenyans that the economy is on good footing adding that they reap the benefits.
He told government critics to stop commenting on the status of the economy in public forums without concrete evidence of their claims.
The CS said that the national treasury had managed to stabilize the economy and that the broad based government was committed to putting money in the pockets of the ordinary people.
He said although Kenyans still face some economic challenges, his ministry had put in place robust mechanisms to improve the key sectors of production.
Speaking yesterday in Homa Bay town during the launch of Homa Bay County Press Club, Mbadi said some of the achievements include successful liability management to avoid defaulting in external loans repayments.
“We have managed to flatten the curve in debt repayments. We had syndicated loans of USD 900 million. This year, we have paid almost USD 600 million. We will pay the remaining amount by 2027,” the CS said.
He said that the repayments, if not done early, would have strained the country.
The CS added that the country still needs to repay USD 1 billion by 2028.
“We cannot wait for the deadline because the shilling will lose its strength against the dollar like it happened last year. This happens when we cannot repay loans on time,” Mr Mbadi said.
The CS further said the country was able to increase its debt stock by Sh1 trillion without borrowing from the international market.
Mr Mbadi said National Treasury has successfully managed to raise another Eurobond which he said will be split into two.
One of them will be repaid between 2030 and 2032 with the country repaying Sh250 billion each year.
“Another payment will be a 12-year bond which will be paid from 2036. That will provide a reprieve for us. It is referred to as smoothing the maturity of the debt stock,” Mr Mbadi said.
According to the cabinet secretary, investors have a lot of confidence in the economy and are willing to put their money on local investments.
“The yield in our bond has gone down because the credit rating for Kenya has gone up because the confidence level in our economy has also gone up,” he explained.
He said the government has a firm commitment to managing debt more wisely.
“This is the third such transaction since 2024, and it shows the government’s firm commitment to managing debt more prudently, paying off loans on time, and protecting Kenyans from sudden repayment shocks,” he explained.
Mbadi asserted that the Treasury is committed to spending less on interest, easing pressure on taxpayers and keeping the economy stable while creating room to fund development priorities such as roads, health and education.
By Davis Langat
