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Ethiopia now Kenya’s top regional investment destination— Survey

Published

2 years ago

May 10, 2023

A recent regional survey has revealed that Ethiopia now tops Kenya’s investments in the East African region.

The survey shows that Tanzania and Uganda have been displaced for Kenyan funds as the country’s direct investments in Ethiopia hit Ksh60.2 billion ($440.7 million) in 2021—surpassing Tanzania and Uganda’s Ksh51.5 billion ($377 million) and Ksh56.3 billion ($412 million), respectively.

The survey states that “Tanzania was the leading destination for the country’s investment abroad at the start of 2015 the review period, with investments declining in 2018, but later recovering to reach Ksh51.5 billion in 202.”

“Kenya’s direct investment in Uganda reached its peak at Ksh56.3 billion in 2019, while investments in Ethiopia reached Ksh60.2 billion in 2021” it added.

Eastafrican.co reports that a delegation of Kenyans visited the Ethiopian Investment Commission (EIC) in Addis Ababa in October last year where they held talks towards improved investment.

Kenya is the point of entry to the East African market of 300 million people, although its economic growth has not been inclusive, as many Kenyans continue to live in poverty.

Until the COVID-19 pandemic, Kenya was one of the fastest-growing economies in Africa, with an annual average growth of 5.9% between 2010 and 2018.

But its investment in the neighbouring economies is laudable. Being the region’s largest economy, Kenya is positioned to champion trade integration which according a the International Monetary Fund could increase the median merchandise trade flow between African countries by 53 per cent and with the rest of the world by 15%.

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IMF mission concludes 4th loan program assessment in Egypt

Published

2 days ago

November 22, 2024

Ifeoluwa Dada

Following the completion of a recent visit to Egypt, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has announced that its mission had achieved significant strides in policy talks aimed at concluding the fourth review of the IMF loan program.

The review is the fourth in Egypt’s most recent 46-month IMF loan program, which was authorised in 2022 and increased to $8 billion this year following an economic crisis characterised by high inflation and chronic foreign exchange shortages. It may unleash more than $1.2 billion in financing.

Along with reaffirming its commitment to maintain a flexible exchange rate system, the IMF stated that Egypt “has implemented key reforms to preserve macroeconomic stability,” including the unification of the currency rate that facilitated imports.

Earlier on Wednesday, Egypt’s Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly said Cairo has asked the IMF to modify the targets for the programme not only for this year, but for its full duration, he added without giving more details.

“Discussions will continue over the coming days to finalize agreement on the remaining policies and reforms that could support the completion of the fourth review,” the IMF added in its statement.

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Kenya seeks $750m from World Bank, obtains $200m from AfDB— Official

Published

3 days ago

November 20, 2024

Ifeoluwa Dada

The head of debt management for the finance ministry told Reuters that Kenya had obtained a $200 million loan from the African Development Bank (AfDB) and was negotiating a fresh $750 million loan with the World Bank.

After being forced to abandon proposed tax rises costing more than 346 billion shillings ($2.68 billion) in June due to fatal demonstrations, the East African nation’s administration, which has been grappling with significant debt, has been frantically seeking fresh funding.

The Finance Ministry’s public debt management office director general, Raphael Owino, told Reuters that the IMF’s October clearance of the seventh and eighth reviews, which opened the door for a $606 million loan tranche, had aided the ministry’s talks for more loans.

“The World Bank is coming on board, riding on the back of IMF receipts,” Owino said. “The AfDB is already on board.”

The discussions for more assistance, which came under the World Bank’s “Development Policy Operations” (DPO) with the government, were confirmed by a representative at the organization’s Kenya office.

“The amount of the current (loan) is yet to be determined. The amount will also depend on the implementation of the policy reforms agreed upon,” the spokesperson told Reuters, adding that past DPO loans averaged about $750 million.

In May, the World Bank approved the latest round of DPO loans, totalling $1.2 billion.

According to a statement made last month by Finance Minister John Mbadi, Kenya has set a foreign borrowing goal of 168 billion shillings for the fiscal year ending in June 2025.