Kenya Loan From World Bank Hits KSh 138 Billion

Kenya took KSh 137.93 billion in four months to April in a bid to meet the KSh KSh 1 trillion budget deficit.

The loan borrowed from World Bank and rich countries is part of KSh the KSh 433.1 billion that the Treasury is seeking from external lenders.

According to documents presented in Parliament, six out of the nine loans are from the World Bank while the rest were from Germany, Italy and France.

In the documents signed by Treasury CS Ukur Yatani, the loan was procured between January and April to meet the KSh 1.4 trillion fiscal deficit in the 2020/22 budget.

On March 18, Treasury procured KSh 60.2 billion from the International Development Association (IDF) to support Kenya Power investment.

On the same day, another loan totaling about KSh 26 billion was procured from the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) to support Kenya Power towards the green energy path.

The government also borrowed KSh 15.3 billion and KSh 15.7 billion to keep young girls in school and increase water supply in Mombasa and Kwale respectively.

It also took an additional KSh 10.5 billion loan from IDA to boost SMEs after the COVID-19 pandemic and increased access to financial services.

The two banks are directly tied to the World Bank.

On the other hand, the Treasury said it borrowed KSh 782.5 million from Italy on January 26 to improve social and economic development in Malindi and Magarini sub-counties.

Days later, on February 9, the Treasury borrowed KSh 2.08 from Germany on to improve roads in Western Kenya.

It borrowed a further KSh 2.69 billion from France on March 17 to facilitate the purchase of French goods and services.