Tough Times Ahead: Ruto Warns
Tough Times Ahead: Ruto Warns
Tough Times Ahead: Ruto Warns
As his administration works to service Kenya’s outstanding debt, notably the Eurobond, President William Ruto has warned the people of hard economic times. Ruto stated that the nation will be paying the first tranche of the Ksh500 billion Eurobond debt in December during his speech to Parliament on Thursday.
He recognized that since taking office in September 2022, the government has already established the framework for repaying its debts by interacting with a number of financial institutions and development partners. “We are going to be able to pay off the first installment of the USD 2 billion Eurobond debt that is due in December of next year, which is USD 300 million or Ksh 500 billion. Now that the debt has become a major source of worry for the public, markets, and our partners, I can confidently confirm that we will and will pay it off,” he said.
“Although the new course may not be simple, it is morally just, sensible, and most significantly, required. We owe it to the people of Kenya to act morally and face the truth, thus we have had to make difficult and unpleasant decisions.”Ruto clarified that the loans had to be paid back as a warning that the decision will affect Kenyans who already face a high cost of living.
He insisted that Kenya had a duty to settle the obligations, saying that doing so was the most responsible course of action.Ruto continued by saying that if the required actions hadn’t been taken, Kenya would be in financial trouble.He insisted, nevertheless, that the nation could not go back to using subsidies to shield Kenyans from the shocks of these difficult economic times.On the other hand, he hinted that in an effort to lower the high price of food items, he had made assisting the agricultural sector a top priority.
He mentioned, for example, the decline in the price of maize flour and the introduction of a program for the subsidization of fertilizers, which his administration hopes would increase agricultural production.”We were living extravagant and above our means as a nation. Therefore, the time has come to give up the deceptive comforts and benefits of wasteful consumption that allowed us to further sink deeper into unnecessary debt, the Head of State declared.
