Since President William Ruto took office, his clarion call has been to reduce the economic burden on Kenyans; resulting in the formation of the Bottom-Up Economic Transformation Agenda (BETA).
Sceptics questioned whether his formula would work as the majority questioned whether he would make an impact because he deputised his predecessor former President Uhuru Kenyatta in two successive terms.
On the other hand, others expressed optimism that Ruto's plan to transform the economy would come to fruition during his tenure.
One year and five months in office, Ruto has received praise and criticism in equal measure over his policies. Some observers have heaped praise on Uhuru's tenure, noting that the cost of doing business has become difficult in the current regime.
Kenyans.co.ke gives a breakdown of how Ruto has fared in his tenure and draws comparisons with Uhuru during the same timeframe.
To calculate the inflation rate, the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (KNBS) is guided by the Consumer Price Index (CPI). This compares the retail prices of household goods and services during a period and analyses the changes in cost.
Comparison
When Uhuru took office in April 2013, the inflation rate in the country stood at 4.14 per cent. The data rose to 9.2 per cent when he left office, averaging a rate of 6.35 per cent during his two terms.
In contrast, former President Mwai Kibaki took office when the country's inflation rate was 2 per cent and averaged 10.98 per cent throughout his tenure.
At the onset of Ruto's regime in September 2022, the rate had peaked at 9.2 per cent, signalling a ripple effect in the high cost of basic commodities.
From the graph above, Ruto's inflation rate has dropped to 6.3 per cent as of February 2024. However, throughout his tenure, the rate had peaked at 9.23 during the first three months of 2023.
The variance in inflation rate can be attributed to policies instituted by the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) in mitigating the cost of living.
USD Exchange Rate
From 2013 to 2023, the shilling has lost an average of 30 per cent of its value, indicating the steep depreciation of the Kenyan currency.
The shilling dropped from the initial Ksh84.70 in 2013 to the current Ksh133.07 as of March 21, 2024, according to data from the CBK.
In contrast, the dollar was trading at Ksh77.35 when Kibaki became president and depreciated to Ksh84.70 by the time he left office in April 2013.
