Kenya seeks up to $500m from citizens abroad in new bond push

Kenya, seeking to ease strained public finances, is turning to its citizens abroad with plans to issue a diaspora bond worth between $250 million and $500 million.

The government hopes to raise as much as $3.8 billion through the program, according to Prime Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi.

The East African nation is in discussions with a World Bank unit on how to structure the security, which could fund projects ranging from rural electrification to roads, rail, and airports, Bloomberg reported.

Kenya is also preparing to host an International Monetary Fund mission next month to discuss a new lending program. The country has faced fiscal pressure since being forced to abandon planned tax increases after deadly protests in 2024 that left at least 60 people dead.

The economic impact was severe, with the Nairobi Securities Exchange PLC (NSE) reporting a loss of about $600 million in investor wealth in two weeks due to the protests.

To stabilise its finances while keeping living costs in check, the government is pursuing privatisations, public-private partnerships, and asset securitisation to fund infrastructure.

“Because of the backlash from citizens, we shifted our focus toward alternative financing rather than aggressive revenue-raising measures,” Mudavadi said.

“We are working to live within our means, recognising the global economic challenges.”

He added that Kenya has made progress toward being removed from the Financial Action Task Force’s “grey list,” though he did not specify when this might happen.