Kenya

According to the World Bank, Kenya is the only middle income country in Eastern Africa. Its economy relies on tourism, agriculture, telecoms and an innovative service economy. Seen as a promising economy, it benefits from financial help of the IMF and the World Bank. For instance, in February 2021 the IMF granted Kenya the $2.4 billion arrangements to support the next phase of the authorities’ COVID-19 response and their plan to reduce debt vulnerabilities. Kenya is a member of the COMESCA and the East African Community.

In 2010-2019, Kenya’s average GDP growth rate was 5.9%. In 2020, it experienced a drastic decrease of 4.3%. Foreign Direct Investments in Kenya reached $1.3 billion in 2019, which is 18% less than the year before. FDI mostly target Kenyan IT, banking, tourism and infrastructure construction.

Kenya is the 7th most populous country in African. It has a well-developed touristic sector, with 2 million tourists visiting in 2019 and generating $1.6 billion. Kenya suffers from the region’s instability, particularly the attacks from Al-Shabab — an Islamist insurgent group based in Somalia. For instance, the massacre of 147 people at Garissa University College in 2015 was followed by a contraction of almost 14% of GDP generated by tourism in the next 6 months. The literacy rate in Kenya in 2018 was 88% for the 15-25 years old population, the unemployment rate was 2.7% in 2020.

The main contributor (35%) to the Kenya’s GDP is agriculture. The sector employs nearly 53% of the total workforce. The country’s major agricultural exports are tea, coffee, cut flowers, and vegetables. Kenya is the world’s leading exporter of black tea and cut flowers. The industries represent about 16% of the GDP, 9.5% of which accounts for the textile industry. Other important sectors are IT, telecommunications, and construction.