Follow CGSP on Social Media

Listen to the CGSP Podcast

Kenya’s Weakening Currency is Pushing Up the Cost of Imports and Debt Servicing Costs

by Eric Olander
AFP/Simon Mania

The Kenyan shilling is rapidly devaluing against the dollar, breaking a record low of 114 this week and prompting fears that a potentially dangerous economic cycle is gaining momentum.

There’s growing concern that Kenya is spending more and more of its limited foreign exchange reserves on imports and debt servicing costs, both priced in dollars, which then provokes currency traders to sell shillings that ultimately leads to a devaluation of the Kenyan currency.

Lead the Conversation on China

Subscribe Today to Get Full Access to The China-Global South Project

Check Out Everything You'll Get With Your Subscription

The China-Global South Daily Brief delivered to your inbox at 6AM Washington time

Full access to exclusive news and analysis from editors based in the Global South

Transcripts of CGSP’s twice-weekly podcasts

Students and teachers with a valid .edu email address are eligible for a 50% discount off monthly or yearly subscriptions. Email us to receive a discount code.

You Might Like

OPINION: Why Africa Should Embrace the Yuan as a Reserve Currency

Kenyan economist and commentator Benard Aiyeko laid out his case as to why African central banks should add the Chinese yuan to their basket of reserve currencies. Today, only a few African countries ...

Africans Borrowed Heavily From China and Other Bilateral Creditors. Now That Debt is Getting Away From Them

Former U.S. Treasury official and current Senior Fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations, Brad Setser, is providing some of the sharpest, most insightful commentaries on the worsening debt crisis in Africa and ...

China’s Share of Kenya’s Total Debt Shrinks as Borrowing Surges

Kenya’s Parliamentary Budget Office (PBO) is forecasting the country’s total public debt will reach $78 billion this June and $86 billion by the same time in 2023. Meantime, China’s share of ...

What is The China-Global South Project?

Independent

The China-Global South Project is passionately independent, non-partisan and does not advocate for any country, company or culture.

News

A carefully curated selection of the day’s most important China-Global South stories. Updated 24 hours a day by human editors. No bots, no algorithms.

Analysis

Diverse, often unconventional insights from scholars, analysts, journalists and a variety of stakeholders in the China-Global South discourse.

Networking

A unique professional network of China-Africa scholars, analysts, journalists and other practioners from around the world.