The Institute for Social Accountability
Wananchi Rada!
The Petitioners/Applicants herein through a letter dated on 7 February 2022 sought from the Cabinet Secretary National Treasury the Treaties/ Agreements and/or Contracts signed between the Republic of Kenya and any other state, any international financial institution, any international corporation and also information relating to sovereign bonds floated for and on behalf of Kenya in the past nine years by the National Executive by way of a formal request letter.
The Kenya public debt stock currently stands at Ksh 7.712 trillion as of June 2021, having
increased from Ksh 6.28 trillion in March 2020 when the first case of COVID-19 pandemic
was reported in Kenya. This consists of Ksh 3.697 trillion as domestic debt, and Ksh 4.015
trillion as foreign debt, implying reduced borrowing space given the borrowing threshold of
Ksh 9 trillion set by parliament and provided for in section 50(5) of the PFM Act 2012.The
relatively high level of Kenya’s indebtedness and its rising debt burden has serious implications
on the country’s development and debt sustainability initiatives as well as a rising concern on
the rise in domestic debt and its effect on investment in Kenya.
The Okoa Uchumi campaign is a civil society initiative committed to the goal of accountability in Kenya’s public debt management.