Kenya’s huge public debt is choking public spending and undermining the economy. The country’s new government therefore wants to increase tax revenues.
When Kenya’s new President William Ruto addressed the country’s Parliament after taking office in September, he did something unusual. Typically, presidential speeches in Kenya focus on how the government will spend money. Instead, Ruto told legislators that he plans to collect more taxes.
The national budget is indeed over-stretched. More than half of the national revenues go to paying back the colossal public debt. In the past decade under President Uhuru Kenyatta, the country’s debt increased four-fold, not least due to ambitious infrastructure projects. Ruto is not entirely blameless, since he served as Kenyatta’s deputy president.
