Kenya: Public debt reaches 12.82 trillion shillings, warns Controller of Budget

For several years, Kenya has been financing a growing share of its budget through borrowing on both international and local markets to plug a recurring budget deficit and fund infrastructure and public services. In 2024, this dynamic had already fueled popular protests against a finance bill deemed too heavy in new taxes intended for debt servicing. Before Parliament, Controller of Budget Margaret Nyakang'o revealed that Kenya's public debt now stands at 12.82 trillion shillings. According to her, debt service absorbs 71% of state revenues, leaving only 29% to fund civil servant salaries, public services, and development projects. This proportion drastically reduces Nairobi's fiscal maneuverability: fewer resources for health, education, or infrastructure, an increased risk of further tax hikes, and persistent dependence on international creditors, with direct consequences for Kenyan citizens and businesses. This debt trap combines internal factors—structural reliance on borrowing to cover recurring deficits, strained budget management—and external factors—high global interest rates, depreciation of the shilling making foreign-currency debt more expensive. This situation brings Kenya closer to other African economies facing similar pressures on their financial sustainability.