Kenya: the economic challenges awaiting the new President William Ruto

Kenya's new president, William Ruto.

September 5, 2020. REUTERS - MONICAH MWANGI

Text by: RFI Follow

2 mins

Wiliam Ruto therefore officially won the presidential battle in Kenya on September 5, with his election confirmed by the Supreme Court.

But another battle begins for the outgoing vice-president: to meet the immense expectations he raised during the campaign.

William Ruto ran as the people's candidate.

He promised to lift millions of Kenyans out of poverty.

But he inherits an economy in crisis.

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With our correspondent in Nairobi,

One hundred days is the deadline that William Ruto has set for himself to honor his promise to lower the cost of living in Kenya.

Ambitious goal.

Inflation rose again in August.

It reached 8.5%, its highest level in five years, under the cumulative effect of Covid-19, the war in Ukraine and the drought, which should continue to worsen over the coming months.

To achieve this, William Ruto promises, among other things, to invest massively in agriculture.

The question of the price of basic foodstuffs is all the more acute, as the unemployment rate has jumped, particularly among young people;

the International Labor Organization (ILO) puts it at 14%.

Twice as many as the official figures.

A future vice-president under the influence of a legal procedure

Another emergency for William Ruto, dealing with the debt crisis.

Under the two mandates of Uhuru Kenyatta it has almost multiplied by five.

According to the Kenyan treasury, more than half of the country's tax revenue was used last year to repay its various loans.

The country is now considered at “

”

To avoid a default, the IMF has set Kenya a tight fiscal trajectory and will leave little maneuvering to the new president.

In this gloomy context, the fight against corruption, which is endemic in Kenya, could constitute an important lever.

William Ruto promised to tackle it.

This did not prevent him from choosing as running mate and therefore future vice-president, Rigathi Gachagua himself under legal proceedings for acts of corruption.

Guest Africa: Presidential in Kenya: “It is an extremely tight election with less than 2% difference”

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• Kenya

• William Ruto

• Economy