The National Treasury Cabinet Secretary Ukur Yatani has faulted claims that the country has defaulted on the Standard Gauge Railway, SGR, loan.
This is after a local daily made a publication stating that the country has defaulted on the amount owed to the People’s Republic of China, which was taken to facilitate the construction of the railway.
Read: President Ruto Directs Ksh300 Billion Cut In National Budget
Yatani added that Kenya has never defaulted on any loan, saying that the country carries out regular independent rating reviews that reveal the status of debt repayments.
“We wish to state categorically that Kenya has never defaulted on the settlement of its debt service obligations to any of its creditors, nor has any creditor filed or reported any claim of default on debt service payments on facilities extended to the Government of Kenya,” said Yatani in a statement.
“As a country accessing international financial markets to raise resources, Kenya undergoes frequent independent sovereign rating reviews whose outcomes are published widely,” he said.
Yatani added that Kenya prioritizes debt repayment to ensure that the credit rating remains positive while assuring development partners and creditors that there is no reason to worry about the country’s financial situation.
Read: SGR Records Ksh7.1 Billion In Revenues For H1 Of 2022
“It is also important to note, that all public debt, including the SGR loans are paid from the Consolidated Fund in accordance with the Public Finance Management Act, 2012. Debt service is a first charge on the Consolidated Fund and takes precedence over other forms of expenditure,” he said.
“We want to assure our creditors, development partners, investors and the general public that Kenya’s financial position is sound and robust,”
The CS condemned the publication for spreading misinformation, saying it painted the country in a bad light.
The daily stated that Kenya had been fined a total of KSh1.312 billion by Chinese banks for defaulting the repayment.
Email your news TIPS to editor@thesharpdaily.com
