By Tajeu Shadrack Nkapapa
President William Ruto in his press briefing on Friday afternoon at State House, Nairobi announced he had appointed a task force to audit Kenya’s public debt.
This happens after two weeks of anti-government protests by Gen Z demand for accountability from the government of Kenya.
During the protests many Kenyans lost their lives, many got injured and property worth billions of shillings lost.
“Public debt continues to be a major point of conversation in Kenya and today, I’ve appointed an independent task force to carry out a comprehensive forensic audit of our debt and report to us in the next three months,” President Ruto said in the press briefing.
The president further said that the audit should provide the people of Kenya with clarity of the country’s public debt and accounts for the borrowed amount.
“This audit will provide the people of Kenya with clarity on the extent and nature of our debt and how public resources have been expended and will also recommend proposals for managing our public debt in a sustainable manner that does not burden future generations,” Dr. Ruto added.
This forensic audit of Kenya’s public debt has been one of the demands from Gen Z during their protests accusing the government of mismanagement of public resources.
Gen Z pointed accusing fingers at the elected political leaders and branded them as corrupt for displaying opulence in public on huge amounts of money even up to Ksh. 20 million which does not reflect what they earn and the businesses they do.
The angry youths said that the money wasted by state officers was proceeds of corruption and demanded accountability of all public resources to ensure no more burden to Kenyans.
As of now, Kenya’s public debt has been a significant concern for both the government and economic analysts.
In early 2024, Kenya’s public debt is estimated to be around KES 10.2 trillion (approximately USD 90 billion) which is nearly 70% of the country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP).