Kenyan Govt to Contain Fiscal Deficit at 3.5% in FY 2020/21 after Expenditure Control and Policy Measures

The government of Kenya may be able to contain its budget deficit to 3.5 per cent of gross domestic product (GDP) in 2022/23 (FY 2020/21) in the Third Medium Term Plan according to the National Treasury.

“We expect the budget deficit to reduce to 3.5 per cent of GDP in 2022/23 from a high figure of 7.7 percent of the GDP in 2018/19,” said  Amb. Ukur Yatani, Ag. Cabinet Secretary, National Treasury & Planning during the launch of the Fy2020/21 and the Medium-term Budget preparation process on Thursday.

• • • • The First Medium Term Plan covered the period 2008-2012
      • The Second Medium Term Plan covered the period 2013-2017
      • The Third Medium Term Plan (MTP III) was launched on 23rd November 2018 and will guide Kenya’s development agenda between 2018 and 2022.

Treasury plans to achieve this target through expenditure control and policy measures include budget rationalization on non-core expenditures which include foreign and domestic travel, hospitality, training, communication supplies, printing and advertising, purchase of furniture, office and general supplies, use of Government Vehicles, and the Size of Government Delegation in meetings outside the country in line with its fiscal consolidation plan.

“The cuts will be brutal and sustained and with no compromise because the success of this government will depend on our dignity as a country to be self-sufficient,” said the Acting National Treasury Secretary.

“In the face of the slowdown in global growth, our government has adopted an all-inclusive fiscal consolidation policy package, encompassing fiscal, monetary and financial policies,” Yatani said.

Similarly, Francis Anyona, Director of Budget at the  National Treasury said the FY 2020/21 and the Medium Term Budget will only focus on completion of ongoing projects. “In particular, emphasis should be on projects nearing completion to ensure that citizens benefit from such public investments,” said.