Public Protests Foil President Ruto’s Plans to Reduce Kenya’s Budget Deficit
Demonstrators advocating for green initiatives and environmental protection in Africa during a rally.
Proposed levies on the purchase of bread, motor vehicles, mobile-money transfers and banking services will be shelved. The concessions followed anti-government demonstrations in the capital, Nairobi, that led to skirmishes with the police and the arrest of more than 300 people. Government has proposed a raft of aggressive tax measures aimed at generating an additional $2.4 billion of revenue in the fiscal year that begins on July 1. It’s targeting a budget shortfall equivalent to 3.3% of gross domestic product, compared with 5.7% in the current fiscal year. These efforts are to try to stabilize its finances in order to fulfill a key objective of an International Monetary Fund program. Earlier this month, the authorities reached a staff level agreement with the Washington-based lender to unlock more funding subject to the state implementing fiscal adjustments.