Reacting to Kenya’s abandonment of the final review of its current $3.6 billion International Monetary Fund (IMF) support program and request for a new lending program on the back of rising debt servicing costs, ActionAid International Kenya’s Programs and Strategy Lead, Samson Orao, said:
“It is deeply concerning that Kenya finds itself in this recurring cycle of failing to meet IMF program conditions and seeking new agreements. This pattern suggests a fundamental disconnect between the imposed austerity measures, the realities of our economy and the needs of our people.
The challenge with these programs is their insistence on cutting spending on essential services while prioritizing debt repayment. Elevated debt servicing costs and unmet revenue targets have contributed to this situation. Debt servicing pressure has led to our government reducing spending on essential services like healthcare, and we have seen mechanisms like the Social Health Insurance Fund struggling, leaving many patients in crisis. This has devastating impacts on vulnerable communities, who pay the price and struggle to access healthcare and education.
“The time has come for genuine conversation on the need to move away from this reliance on IMF programs and explore more sustainable and equitable economic policies that prioritise the needs of Kenyans. Further, it is high time the much-touted Debt Audit pronounced by government is also completed for Kenyans to understand the source and usage of these debts, and to avoid odious debt.”
ENDS
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About ActionAid
ActionAid is a global federation working with more than 41 million people living in more than 71 countries, including some of the world’s poorest countries. We want to see a just, fair, and sustainable world in which everybody enjoys the right to a life of dignity and freedom from poverty and oppression. We work to achieve social justice and gender equality and to eradicate poverty, including by shifting power to local organizations and movements.
