By Ebi Kesiena
Kenya’s President, William Ruto, announced that the country will not acquire loans to pay civil servants, even as union groups threatened to go on strike due to unpaid March salaries.
According to Ruto, the salary delays are due to the country’s substantial public debt, with some loans becoming due this month.
He emphasized that taxes collected by the revenue authority would be utilized to pay the salaries. However, at least two worker umbrella bodies have warned of a strike this week if the salaries are not paid.
Kenya’s chief economic adviser, speaking to the local media, assured that the salaries would be paid by the end of the month. The government has been urged to reduce the wastage of public funds.
Currently, Kenya’s public debt accounts for 65% of the national revenue, with over $420 million needed each month to pay the salaries and pensions of civil servants.
This development comes after the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund separately warned of a new debt crisis in sub-Saharan Africa, with numerous countries at a high risk of debt distress.
