International Monetary Fund Deputy Managing Director Dr. Nigel Clarke traveled to Kenya on his first overseas trip since joining Fund leadership in October, meeting major stakeholders including President Ruto, Central Bank Dr. Governor Kamau Thugge, Treasury Cabinet Secretary John Mbadi and Treasury Principal Secretary Dr. Chris Kiptoo.
- On the recent criticism against the multilateral lender, resulting from stringent taxation measures imposed by the Kenyan government, the IMF distanced itself holding that individual country decisions remain within the domain of the authorities.
- The controversial Finance Bill 2024 containing tax hikes which was fronted to parliament in June, was met with public resentment, ending in deadly protests.
- Kenya agreed to a 4-year arrangement with the IMF in 2021, subsequently signing up for additional lending to support climate change measures in May 2023, taking its total IMF loan access to $3.6 billion.
“Specific revenue measures are not a design of the IMF. The specific choices made are totally within the purview of the Kenyan government,” Dr. Nigel Clarke said in a Media Roundtable on Tuesday.
In October, Kenya secured US$606 million from the IMF after completion of the 7th and 8th reviews under the programme, with the final review expected in April 2025.
“I understand some of the misconceptions that exist…… At the end of the day, specific policy choices, in particular revenue choices, are made by Kenyan authorities taking into consideration what is socially and politically feasible,” Clarke said.
Kenya had requested a governance diagnostic review in October, which the Deputy Managing Director welcomed, confirming that it will be done in the early weeks of 2025. “We expect that a mission will be fielded early in the new year,” Clarke noted. However, the IMF held that they cannot resolve all governance issues in the country but will only lay out a roadmap towards reforms through engagement with authorities.
“The IMF provides directional advice that is designed to assist in the attainment and maintenance of fiscal and external sustainability. In the process of providing advice, we always ensure a range of options is discussed and put on the table,” he said.
Clarke added that the IMF will support Kenya either through a programme or indirectly. “We have a number of means in supporting Kenya whether in a programme or outside of it,” he concluded.
