NAIROBI: The IMF trimmed its forecast for Kenya’s economic growth on Wednesday, projecting gross domestic product would expand about 6 percent next year after growing a less-than-expected 5.6 per cent in 2015.
The fund, which has a mission visiting the East African country, previously estimated GDP would grow by 6.5 per cent in 2015 and 6.8 per cent next year.
“The growth acceleration in 2015 is slower than projected … due to delays in planned road infrastructure spending, weaker tourism receipts, and volatile external capital flows,” Vitaliy Kramarenk, the IMF head of mission to Kenya, said in a news conference.
Real GDP growth should accelerate to about 6 percent next year, he said, because of the “continuation of strong investment momentum, effects of good rain in agriculture, and a pick up in tourism following removal of travel advisories from major tourism source markets”.
At the same news conference, Treasury CS Henry Rotich said he estimated Kenya’s 2015 economic growth between 5.5 and 6 percent. In November, Rotich had said this year’s growth would be in the range of 5.8 to 6.0 per cent, citing tighter monetary policy and the potential effect of the El Nino weather phenomenon, which has brought heavy rains.
