US Ambassador Meg Whitman on Tuesday praised President Wiliam Ruto's leadership on matters of Finance Bill 2024 and hustler empowerment.
Whitman, while speaking in an interview with Capital FM, particularly praised the public participation spearheaded by the government.
She noted that the administration was brave in handling the economic environment which has affected not only Kenya but the rest of the globe as well.
"The financial situation facing the country is quite difficult as you well know and the international financial institutions loans IMF (International Monetary Fund) and World Bank have restrictions around the increase in revenue collection," she explained.
"That is balanced by growing the economy and how to keep taxes at a minimum and I know that the Finance minister and the President are trying to balance those various pressures."
She further noted that projects such as the Hustler Fund, which the Head of State has led, are empowering entrepreneurs who are increasingly achieving financial freedom and growing the economy.
"What I really admire about Kenya is the notion of public participation. When a Finance Bill comes out, there is a real engagement by the public, businesses and government. I have confidence that Kenya will come to the best answer possible which is not an easy one," she added.
"My view is that President William Ruto is doing the best job that he can do in the current very difficult economic situation that is not unique to Kenya but he is navigating it."
The Parliamentary Finance Committee closed the public participation exercise for the Finance Bill 2024 yesterday at the Kenyatta International Conference Center. The budget is expected to be presented in Parliament tomorrow.
Since the bill was made public a few weeks ago, Kenyan citizens have expressed concern over the government's plan to introduce and increase a slew of taxes.
The Kenya Association of Manufacturers (KAM) reckons that the high cost of doing business will push the prices of commodities.
For instance, KAM revealed that if the bill is passed as is, the price of cooking oil will shoot up by 80 per cent pushing other basic products such as bread and oil.
In a recent projection, Kenyan company CEOs also projected a spike in job cuts while the sector believes foreign investors will consider fleeing.
