Kenya starts tightening its belt

Kenya took the first step towards cutting excessive government spending and reducing a gaping fiscal deficit that have driven up borrowing, a draft Treasury budget review shows.

President Uhuru Kenyatta’s government has been criticised for ramping up borrowing since coming to power in 2013. Total public debt stands at 55 per cent of GDP, up from 42 per cent when he took over.

The critics accuse the government of saddling future generations with too much debt.

The finance ministry said it will cut the government’s spending for the 2019/20 fiscal year by 2.1 per cent, equivalent to Sh46.2 billion.