A team of staff from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) is currently visiting Kenya on a fact-finding mission, according to an announcement made late Thursday. This visit is part of ongoing efforts to navigate the economic challenges faced by the country in the aftermath of recent deadly protests that disrupted the government’s planned tax increases.
In June, President William Ruto abandoned the finance bill intended for this year, which has exacerbated the already significant budget deficit, led to mounting unpaid bills, and caused delays in the disbursement of IMF funding. Julie Kozack, the head of communications for the IMF, stated that this mission is “part of our ongoing and constructive dialogue with the Kenyan authorities to find a balanced path forward.” She did not elaborate further, indicating that additional updates would be provided upon the completion of the mission.
Kenya had entered into a four-year loan agreement with the IMF in 2021 and secured additional lending for climate change measures in May 2023, bringing its total IMF loan access to $3.6 billion. The IMF requires regular reviews of reforms—every six months in Kenya’s case—before releasing further tranches of funding.
The IMF and Kenya had reached a staff-level agreement on the seventh review of Kenya’s programme in June. However, the protests and the subsequent withdrawal of the finance bill have delayed the approval process by the IMF’s executive board and postponed the release of funds.
Kenyan government officials have indicated that they anticipate the IMF board will consider approving a $600 million tranche later this month, although no specific date has been set for the meeting to discuss this matter.
