President William Ruto’s administration has asked the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to conduct an official assessment of corruption and governance issues that are ailing the country.
According to Reuters, the government requested a probe into how corruption and governance issues were draining revenue and creating other problems in state finances. “The countries themselves must request the IMF’s so-called governance diagnostic to investigate corruption and governance issues,” noted an official privy to the information.
The publication revealed that the assessment, which is not directly linked to the disbursement of the Ksh77 billion loan initially requested by Kenya, would be a show of goodwill in the country’s efforts to get its finances back on track.
“We have encouraged the Kenyan authorities in the past, and we continue to encourage them to request a governance diagnostic,” noted IMF spokesperson Julie Kozack during a press briefing in Washington DC, the United States. “Promoting good governance remains an essential part of the IMF engagement with the Kenyan authorities,” she added.
President William Ruto (left) during a round-table with President of France Emmanuel Macron, International Monetary Fund Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva and the President of the World Bank Group Ajay Banga in Paris on June 22, 2023.
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A governance diagnostic request would also help facilitate discussions about further IMF support and further aid in identifying where the challenges are, and then proposing necessary measures to mitigate corruption activities.
The latest move by the government comes two days after major shareholders at the Bretton Woods Institution pushed Kenya to initiate an assessment of corruption and governance issues as part of a push to unlock lending that has been stalled by the shelving of the Finance Bill 2024.
This push by the Western countries followed the recent anti-government demonstrations across the country where protesters lamented a surge in corruption within the government.
In particular, the protesters accused the government of imposing strenuous tax measures with a section of politicians utilising the taxes to fund their lavish lifestyles.
Besides Kenya, the IMF has in the past made governance diagnostic reports on 14 countries since 2014, including Ukraine, Cameroon and Sri Lanka. Diagnostics for more countries are underway.
Meanwhile, the IMF has been at a crossroads with the government amidst President William Ruto’s controversial decision to withdraw the Finance Bill 2024. The scrapping of the piece of legislation delayed Kenya’s loan approval due to a lack of consensus on new revenue targets.
However, despite suspending the disbursement, the Fund’s officials in mid-September this year visited the country and held discussions on the recent developments in Kenya.
In a statement issued by the IMF, the discussions centred around policies and reforms to address the emerging economic and fiscal challenges. During the meeting, the government expressed its commitment to making economic and governance reforms to fit the Fund’s recommendations.
President William Ruto during a meeting with IMF officials and officials from the Kenyan national treasury at State House in Nairobi on November 13, 2023
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