Treasury must focus on reducing the country’s public debt burden

In recent weeks, the government has been at pains to explain how the Eurobond debt was used as the unrelenting opposition continued to pile pressure. Politicians on either side of the political divide have discussed this matter ad nauseum, supporting their party positions. I believe it is within the mandate of the MPs to examine the issue in a bipartisan manner through the respective committees after the Auditor General submits his report on the matter rather than politicise it.

Nonetheless, the increasing public debt is a matter of concern that should remain in the public discourse. According to the Treasury website, our total public debt stands at Sh3 trillion, up from Sh2 trillion in 2013, with external debt now representing over 50 per cent of the total. In simple terms, we have borrowed over Sh1 trillion to finance development in the past 24 months, in addition to our own revenues that have been appropriated towards development projects. Treasury records reveal that only 41 per cent of the external debt has been utilised for infrastructure, energy, and ICT. The rest was spent on other areas, including public administration, health, education, etc.