President William Ruto's economic advisor David Ndii has indicated that the government's target is to lower the inflation rate to below 5 per cent by May.
In a statement dated March 30, Ndii noted that the inflation rate had already begun to drop in 2024. Inflation rate is the per cent increase of basic commodities over a given period of time.
He cited data from the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (KNBS) which showed that the inflation rate dropped to 5.7 per cent in March.
"We are on track for a percentage below 5% by May," he stated.
On the other hand, he noted that the government would shift their focus to five economic factors after the drop in inflation. Among them is taming the current budget deficit.
Ruto's first budget of Ksh4 trillion had a deficit of Ksh700 billion, a move that forced the government to take up loans to implement various projects.
This has also seen Ruto come under sharp criticism for the recent loans taken up by the government from foreign governments and multinational institutions such as the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
Ndii added that the government would also be aiming to lower the current interest rate to 10 per cent and below. Through this, Kenyans will be able to get cheaper loans.
Further, he indicated that Ruto would also focus more on agriculture which has been one of the pillars for the administration. Under this programme, the government introduced fertiliser subsidies.
Additionally, the government will be accelerating the transition to electric vehicles.
Already, the government had a draft e-mobility policy which will be coming into force after approval. The policy was unveiled by Transport Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen on March 27.
Among new measures that have also been introduced in the EV acceleration plan are the green-coloured number plates that will be issued to motorists with electric vehicles and motorcycles.
