Kenya is pursuing a Ksh. 75.9 billion (US$750 million) loan from the World Bank (WB) to boost its budgetary expenditure, a news report by Reuters has revealed.
According to Reuters, the documents on the suggested funding have been posted on the Washington based lender’s site even though the financier’s Board of Directors is yet to approve the request by the Kenyan government.
Reuters similarly reports that should the loan be approved by the World Bank, the funds will be directly channeled to the treasury’s accounts and it will be the first time in years that the World Bank will wire money directly into the treasury’s account.
Despite financing multiple development projects within the country, the World Bank usually injects the funds directly into the schemes while totally circumventing making remittances to the treasury.
The loan, which falls under the lender’s development policy financing, is intended to support the government’s policy and institutional reforms that will make economic growth in the country more inclusive.
The revelation comes just one week after Kenya’s administration obtained a third Eurobond priced at Ksh. 210 billion to be repaid in two tranches of 7 year and 12 years which will add on to Kenya’s piling debt that sat at Ksh. 5.4 trillion as of May 2019.
The funds, according to Treasury Cabinet Secretary Henry Rotich, will be used to repay part of the first Eurobond which amounts to Ksh. 75 billion (USD 750 million) while financing a number of development projects as well as the country’s budgetary expenditure.
ALSO READ: Affordable Housing boosted by Ksh. 25 billion World Bank loan
