View source for Economy of Kenya

{{Short description|None}}
{{Use Kenyan English|date=July 2023}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=June 2020}}
{{Infobox economy
| country = Kenya
| image = Nairobi%27s_Central_Business_District_Landmark_Skyscrapers..jpg
| caption = [[Nairobi]], the financial centre of [[Kenya]]
| currency = [[Kenyan shilling]] (KES, KSh)
| year = 
| organs = [[African Union|AU]], [[African Continental Free Trade Agreement|AfCFTA]], [[East African Community|EAC]], [[Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa|COMESA]], [[Community of Sahel-Saharan States|CEN-SAD]], [[World Trade Organization|WTO]] and others
| group = {{plainlist|
*[[Developing country|Developing/Emerging]]<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/weo/2019/01/weodata/weoselco.aspx?g=2200&sg=All+countries+%2f+Emerging+market+and+developing+economies |title=World Economic Outlook Database, April 2019 |publisher=[[International Monetary Fund]] |website=IMF.org |access-date=29 September 2019 |archive-date=22 December 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191222001529/https://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/weo/2019/01/weodata/weoselco.aspx?g=2200&sg=All+countries+%2f+Emerging+market+and+developing+economies |url-status=live }}</ref>
*Lower-middle income economy<ref>{{cite web |url=https://datahelpdesk.worldbank.org/knowledgebase/articles/906519-world-bank-country-and-lending-groups |title=World Bank Country and Lending Groups |publisher=[[World Bank]] |website=datahelpdesk.worldbank.org |access-date=29 September 2019 |archive-date=28 October 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191028223324/https://datahelpdesk.worldbank.org/knowledgebase/articles/906519-world-bank-country-and-lending-groups |url-status=live }}</ref>}}
| population = {{increase}} 51,526,000 (2023 est.)<ref>{{cite web |title=Population, total - Kenya |url=https://www.knbs.or.ke/?p=5621 |website=knbs.or.ke |date=4 November 2019 |publisher=[[Kenya National Bureau of Statistics]] |access-date=1 April 2020 |archive-date=13 November 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191113183948/https://www.knbs.or.ke/?p=5621 |url-status=live }}</ref>
| gdp rank = {{plainlist|
* [[List of countries by GDP (nominal)|62th (nominal; 2025)]]
* [[List of countries by GDP (PPP)|59th (PPP; 2025)]]
}}
| growth = {{plainlist|   
* {{Increase}} 4.5%&nbsp;(2024)<ref name="IMF DataMapper" />
* {{Increase}} 4.8%&nbsp;(2025)<ref name="IMF DataMapper" />
* {{Increase}} 4.9%&nbsp;({{abbr|2026f|2025 forecast}})<ref name="IMF DataMapper" />
* {{Increase}} 5.0%&nbsp;({{abbr|2027f|2025 forecast}})<ref name="IMF DataMapper" />
}}
| per capita = {{plainlist|
* {{Increase}} $2,550 (nominal; {{abbr|2025|2025 forecast}})<ref name="IMF DataMapper"/>
* {{increase}} $7,560 (PPP; {{abbr|2025|2025 forecast}})<ref name="IMF DataMapper"/> 
}}
| per capita rank = {{plainlist|
* [[List of countries by GDP per capita (nominal)|148th (nominal; 2025)]]
* [[List of countries by GDP per capita (PPP)|139th (PPP; 2025)]]
}}
| sectors = {{plainlist|
*[[Primary sector of the economy|Agriculture]]: 29%
*[[Secondary sector of the economy|Industry]]: 18%
*[[Tertiary sector of the economy|Services]]: 53% 
*(2021est.)<ref name="CIAWFKE">{{cite web |url=https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/kenya/ |title=The World Factbook |publisher=[[Central Intelligence Agency]] |website=CIA.gov |access-date=15 June 2019 |archive-date=24 January 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210124224025/https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/kenya/ |url-status=live }}</ref>}}
| inflation = 7.9% (2022est.)<ref name="2020/01">{{cite web |title=World Economic Outlook Database, April 2020 |url=https://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/weo/2020/01/weodata/weorept.aspx?pr.x=67&pr.y=12&sy=2017&ey=2021&scsm=1&ssd=1&sort=country&ds=.&br=1&c=664&s=NGDP_RPCH%2CPPPGDP%2CPCPIPCH&grp=0&a= |website=IMF.org |publisher=International Monetary Fund |access-date=18 April 2020 |archive-date=30 July 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200730224800/https://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/weo/2020/01/weodata/weorept.aspx?pr.x=67&pr.y=12&sy=2017&ey=2021&scsm=1&ssd=1&sort=country&ds=.&br=1&c=664&s=NGDP_RPCH,PPPGDP,PCPIPCH&grp=0&a= |url-status=live }}</ref>
| poverty = 14% ( 2022 est.)<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.worldpoverty.io/ |title=''world poverty clock '' |access-date=6 January 2020 |archive-date=19 December 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201219233913/https://worldpoverty.io/ |url-status=dead }}</ref>
| gini = 38.7 {{color|darkorange|medium}} (2021)<ref name="CIAWFKE"/>
| hdi = {{plainlist|
*{{increase}} 0.628 {{color|darkorange|medium}} (2023)<ref>{{cite web |url=http://hdr.undp.org/en/indicators/137506 |title=Human Development Index (HDI) |publisher=[[Human Development Report|HDRO (Human Development Report Office)]] [[United Nations Development Programme]] |website=hdr.undp.org |access-date=17 November 2022 |archive-date=19 March 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220319173759/http://hdr.undp.org/en/indicators/137506 |url-status=live }}</ref> ([[List of countries by Human Development Index|152nd]])
*{{increase}} 0.456 {{color|red|low}} [[List of countries by inequality-adjusted HDI|IHDI]] (2023)<ref>{{cite web |url=http://hdr.undp.org/en/content/table-3-inequality-adjusted-human-development-index-ihdi |title=Inequality-adjusted Human Development Index (IHDI) |publisher=[[Human Development Report|HDRO (Human Development Report Office)]] [[United Nations Development Programme]] |website=hdr.undp.org |access-date=17 November 2022 |archive-date=12 December 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201212055527/http://hdr.undp.org/en/content/table-3-inequality-adjusted-human-development-index-ihdi |url-status=dead }}</ref>}}
| cpi = {{increase}} 32 out of 100 points (2024, [[Corruption Perceptions Index|121st rank]])
| labour = {{plainlist|
*{{increase}} 21,190,309 (2019)<ref>{{cite web |title=Labor force, total - Kenya |url=https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SL.TLF.TOTL.IN?locations=KE&name_desc=false |website=data.worldbank.org |publisher=World Bank |access-date=17 January 2020 |archive-date=1 August 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200801004133/https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SL.TLF.TOTL.IN?locations=KE&name_desc=false |url-status=live }}</ref>
*72.4% employment rate (2016)<ref>{{cite web |title=Employment to population ratio, 15+, total (%) (national estimate) - Kenya |url=https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SL.EMP.TOTL.SP.NE.ZS?locations=KE&name_desc=false |website=data.worldbank.org |publisher=World Bank |access-date=17 January 2020 |archive-date=31 July 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200731222315/https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SL.EMP.TOTL.SP.NE.ZS?locations=KE&name_desc=false |url-status=live }}</ref>}}
| occupations = {{plainlist|
*[[Primary sector of the economy|Agriculture]]: 54%
*[[Secondary sector of the economy|Industry]]: 8%
*[[Tertiary sector of the economy|Services]]: 38% 
*(2020 est.)<ref name="CIAWFKE"/>}}
| unemployment = 2.98% (2020 est.)<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.statista.com/statistics/808608/unemployment-rate-in-kenya/ |title=''Statista'' |access-date=8 October 2019 |archive-date=5 August 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200805060723/https://www.statista.com/statistics/808608/unemployment-rate-in-kenya/ |url-status=live }}</ref>
| industries = Consumer goods (plastic, furniture, batteries, textiles, clothing, soap, cigarettes, flour, confectionery), pharmaceuticals, agricultural products, horticulture, oil refining; aluminium, steel, lead; cement, commercial ship repair, tourism, information technology
| exports = {{increase}} $13.9 billion (2022 est.)<ref name="CIAWFKE"/>
| export-goods = Tea, horticultural products, coffee, petroleum products, fish, cement, apparel
| export-partners = {{plainlist|
*{{flag|Uganda}} 14% 
*{{flag|Pakistan}} 8% 
*{{flag|United States}} 8%
*{{flag|Netherlands}} 8% 
*{{flag|United Kingdom}} 7% 
*(2020)<ref name="CIAWFKE"/>}}
| imports = {{increase}} $24.4 billion (2022 est.)<ref name="CIAWFKE"/>
| import-goods = Machinery and transportation equipment, oil, petroleum products, motor vehicles, iron and steel, resins and plastics
| import-partners = {{plainlist|
*{{flag|China}} 27% 
*{{flag|India}} 11% 
*{{flag|United Arab Emirates}} 7% 
*{{flag|Japan}} 4% 
*{{flag|Saudi Arabia}} 3%   
*(2020)<ref name="CIAWFKE"/>}}
| current account = {{decrease}} −$5.021 billion (2017 est.)<ref name="CIAWFKE"/>
| FDI = {{plainlist|
*{{increase}} $8.738 billion (31 December 2017 est.)<ref name="CIAWFKE"/> 
*{{increase}} Abroad: $1.545 billion (31 December 2017 est.)<ref name="CIAWFKE"/>}}
| gross external debt = {{decreasePositive}} $27.59 billion (31 December 2017 est.)<ref name="CIAWFKE"/>
| debt = {{increaseNegative}} 54.2% of GDP (2017 est.)<ref name="CIAWFKE"/>
| revenue = 21.89 billion (2022 est.)
| expenses = 26.93 billion (2022 est.)
| balance = −6.7% (of GDP) (2017 est.)<ref name="CIAWFKE"/>
| credit = {{plainlist|
*[[Standard & Poor's]]:<ref>{{cite web |title=Sovereigns rating list |publisher=Standard & Poor's |url=http://www.standardandpoors.com/ratings/sovereigns/ratings-list/en/eu/?subSectorCode=39 |access-date=26 May 2011 |archive-date=28 September 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110928234500/http://www.standardandpoors.com/ratings/sovereigns/ratings-list/en/eu/?subSectorCode=39 |url-status=live }}</ref>
*B+ (Domestic)
*B+ (Foreign)
*BB- (T&C Assessment)
*Outlook: Stable<ref name="guardian">{{cite news |title=How Fitch, Moody's and S&P rate each country's credit rating |date=15 April 2011 |first1=Simon |last1=Rogers |first2=Ami |last2=Sedghi |work=The Guardian |url=https://www.theguardian.com/news/datablog/2010/apr/30/credit-ratings-country-fitch-moodys-standard |access-date=31 May 2011 |archive-date=1 August 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130801105234/http://www.theguardian.com/news/datablog/2010/apr/30/credit-ratings-country-fitch-moodys-standard |url-status=live }}</ref><br/>[[Fitch Group|Fitch]]:<ref name=guardian/>
*B+
*Outlook: Stable}}
| reserves = {{increase}} $7.354 billion (31 December 2017 est.)<ref name="CIAWFKE"/>
| aid = 
| spelling = UK
| gdp = {{plainlist|
* {{Increase}} $136.01 billion ([[GDP (nominal)|nominal]]; {{abbr|2025|2025 forecast}})<ref name="IMF DataMapper">{{cite web |url=https://www.imf.org/external/datamapper/profile/KEN |title=IMF DataMapper: Kenya |website=[[International Monetary Fund]] |date=2025 |access-date=31 May 2025}}</ref>
* {{increase}} $403.15 billion ([[Purchasing power parity|PPP]]; {{abbr|2025|2025}})<ref name="IMF DataMapper"/> 
}}
}}
The '''economy of Kenya''' is [[market-based]] with a few state enterprises. Kenya has an emerging market and is an averagely industrialised nation ahead of its [[East African Community|East African]] peers. Currently a lower middle income nation, Kenya plans to be a newly industrialised nation by 2030. The major industries driving the Kenyan economy include financial services, agriculture, real estate, manufacturing, logistics, tourism, retail and energy. As of 2020, [[Kenya]] had the third largest economy in [[Sub-Saharan Africa]], behind [[economy of Nigeria|Nigeria]] and [[economy of South Africa|South Africa]]. Regionally, Kenya has had a stronger and more stable economy compared to its neighbouring countries within East Africa.<ref name="World Bank Open Data">{{Cite web |title=World Bank Open Data |url=https://data.worldbank.org/ |access-date=2024-04-19 |website=World Bank Open Data |archive-date=26 May 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230526025607/https://data.worldbank.org/ |url-status=live }}</ref> By 2023, the country had become Africa's largest start-up hub by both funds invested and number of projects.<ref name=":4">{{Cite news|date=2020-06-05|title=Kenya Tops Angola as Sub-Saharan Africa's No. 3 Economy|language=en|work=Bloomberg.com|url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-06-05/kenya-tops-angola-as-sub-saharan-africa-s-no-3-economy-chart|access-date=2020-12-06|archive-date=29 November 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201129180830/https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-06-05/kenya-tops-angola-as-sub-saharan-africa-s-no-3-economy-chart|url-status=live}}</ref>

The government of Kenya is generally investment-friendly and has enacted several regulatory reforms to simplify foreign and local investment, including the creation of an [[export processing zone]]. An increasingly significant portion of Kenya's foreign financial inflows are [[remittance]]s by Kenyans in the Diaspora, who work in the [[United States]], the [[Middle East]], [[Europe]] and [[Asia]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Kenya Company Registration|url=http://www.healyconsultants.com/company-incorporation/kenya-company-formation.html|publisher=Healy Consultants|access-date=2 September 2013|archive-date=18 May 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130518164750/http://www.healyconsultants.com/company-incorporation/kenya-company-formation.html|url-status=live}}</ref> According to data by the Central Bank of Kenya,<ref>{{Cite web |title=The Kenya Forum {{!}} Kenyan diaspora send home a record Sh497 billion remittances - The Kenya Forum |url=https://www.kenyaforum.net/economy/kenyan-diaspora-record-sh497-billion-remittances/ |access-date=2024-06-27 |website=www.kenyaforum.net|date=18 January 2023 }}</ref> remittances from Kenyans living abroad make up over 3.4 percent of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP).

As of September 2018, economic prospects were positive, with above 6% [[Gross domestic product|gross domestic product (GDP)]] growth expected.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.knbs.or.ke/download/economic-survey-2018/|title=Kenya Economic Survey 2018|access-date=30 September 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180930120021/https://www.knbs.or.ke/download/economic-survey-2018/|archive-date=30 September 2018|url-status=dead}}</ref> This growth was attributed largely to expansions in the telecommunications, transport, and construction sectors; a recovery in agriculture; and the rise of small businesses helping to pull the economy. These improvements are supported by a large pool of highly educated professional workers. There is a high level of IT literacy and innovation, especially among young Kenyans.<ref>{{cite web |url= https://www.capitalfm.co.ke/business/2018/07/kenyan-tech-startups-scoop-half-of-africas-funding-in-six-months/ |title= Kenyan tech startups scoop half of Africa's funding in six months of 2018 |date= 10 July 2018 |publisher= Capital Business Kenya |access-date= 14 April 2019 |archive-date= 14 April 2019 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20190414080136/https://www.capitalfm.co.ke/business/2018/07/kenyan-tech-startups-scoop-half-of-africas-funding-in-six-months/ |url-status= live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url= https://vc4a.com/kenya/|title= KENYA STARTUP ECOSYSTEM OVERVIEW|publisher= VC4A|access-date= 14 April 2019|archive-date= 12 January 2020|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20200112200119/https://vc4a.com/kenya/|url-status= live}}</ref>

In 2020, Kenya ranked 56th in the World Bank [[Ease of doing business index|ease of doing business]] rating, up from 61st in 2019 (of 190 countries).<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.doingbusiness.org/data/exploreeconomies/kenya|title=Doing Business in Kenya - World Bank Group|website=doingbusiness.org|access-date=2018-11-18|archive-date=10 September 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180910125004/http://www.doingbusiness.org/data/exploreeconomies/kenya|url-status=live}}</ref> Compared to its neighbours, Kenya has a well-developed social and physical infrastructure.<ref name="World Bank Open Data"/>

==History==
Between 70 AD and 1500 AD, trade routes — spanning Africa, Asia and Europe — integrated the Kenyan coastal strip into the world economy.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://archive.org/details/cu31924030139236|title=The Periplus of the Erythræan sea; travel and trade in the Indian Ocean|work=New York : Longmans, Green, and Co.|access-date=30 September 2018}}</ref> Foreign merchants would bring their merchandise to the Kenyan coast and leave with African goods.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.malindikenya.net/en/articles/words/stories/600-years-ago-the-tales-of-the-first-chinese-in-malindi.html|title=ZANG HE LIVED FOR ONE YEAR IN KENYA IN 1417|work=malindikenya.net|access-date=30 September 2018|archive-date=30 September 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180930193121/http://www.malindikenya.net/en/articles/words/stories/600-years-ago-the-tales-of-the-first-chinese-in-malindi.html|url-status=live}}</ref>

In 1499 AD, [[Vasco da Gama]], a Portuguese explorer, returned to Europe after discovering [[Portuguese discovery of the sea route to India|the sea route to India]] through South Africa.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://kenyatravelsites.wordpress.com/2011/12/15/the-history-of-the-vasco-da-gama-pillar/|title=The History of the Vasco da Gama Pillar|work=Kenya Travel Sites|access-date=30 September 2018|date=2011-12-15|archive-date=29 April 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170429000132/https://kenyatravelsites.wordpress.com/2011/12/15/the-history-of-the-vasco-da-gama-pillar/|url-status=live}}</ref> This new route allowed European nations to dominate the trade economy of the East African coast, with the [[Portugal|Portuguese]] entrenching themselves in the 16th and 17th centuries.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://courses.wcupa.edu/jones/his312/lectures/portugal.htm|title=The Portuguese in Africa in the 19th Century|work=Jim Jones|access-date=30 September 2018|archive-date=2 November 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131102214611/http://courses.wcupa.edu/jones/his312/lectures/portugal.htm|url-status=dead}}</ref> In the 18th century, the Portuguese were replaced in this East African economic corridor by [[Omani Arabs]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://kenyastudy.wordpress.com/precolonialism/19th-century-omani-rule/|title=19th Century Omani Rule|work=kenyastudy.wordpress.com|access-date=30 September 2018|date=2013-05-13|archive-date=30 September 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180930154701/https://kenyastudy.wordpress.com/precolonialism/19th-century-omani-rule/|url-status=live}}</ref> Eventually, the British replaced the Omani Arabs. In 1895 they dominated the coastal strip; by 1920, they had followed the interior trade routes all the way to the [[Buganda Kingdom]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.enzimuseum.org/after-the-stone-age/british-east-africa-protectorate|title=British East Africa Protectorate|work=enzimuseum.org|access-date=30 September 2018|archive-date=6 May 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170506035204/http://www.enzimuseum.org/after-the-stone-age/british-east-africa-protectorate|url-status=live}}</ref> To make this ancient economic trade route more profitable, the British used Indian labourers to build a railway from [[Mombasa]] at the coast to [[Kampala]], the capital of Buganda kingdom, following old trade routes.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.theeagora.com/the-lunatic-express-a-photo-essay-on-the-uganda-railway/|title=THE LUNATIC EXPRESS|work=The Agora|access-date=30 September 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160422095958/http://www.theeagora.com/the-lunatic-express-a-photo-essay-on-the-uganda-railway/|archive-date=22 April 2016}}</ref> Major towns were founded along the railway line, backed by European settler farming communities. The Indian labourers who did not return to [[British India|India]] after railway construction ended were the first to establish shops (dukawallahs) in these towns.<ref>{{cite journal |jstor = 182007|title = Settler Dominance, Agricultural Production and the Second World War in Kenya|journal = The Journal of African History|volume = 21|issue = 4|pages = 497–514|last1 = Spencer|first1 = Ian|year = 1980|doi = 10.1017/S0021853700018715| s2cid=162566026 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.enzimuseum.org/archives/275|title=Construction of the Kenya-Uganda Railway|work=enzimuseum.org|access-date=30 September 2018|archive-date=11 October 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181011185510/http://www.enzimuseum.org/archives/275|url-status=live}}</ref>

During the colonial period, the European settler farming community and the Indian dukawallahs established the foundations of the modern formal Kenyan economy.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://learn.e-limu.org/topic/view/?c=48&t=270|title=European settler farming|work=eLimu|access-date=30 September 2018|archive-date=30 September 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180930154538/http://learn.e-limu.org/topic/view/?c=48&t=270|url-status=live}}</ref> Prominent examples of Asian-Kenyan business owners whose businesses started as dukawallahs include [[Manu Chandaria]] and [[Madatally Manji]].<ref>{{cite journal |last= Himbara |first= David |year= 1993 |title= Myths and Realities of Kenyan Capitalism |jstor= 161345 |journal= Journal of African Political Economy |volume= 31 |issue= 1 |pages= 93–107 }}</ref> While Europeans and Indians enjoyed strong economic growth between 1920 and 1963, Africans were deprived of their land, dehumanised, and forced to work for minimal pay under extremely poor working conditions through a well-established system of racial segregation.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://shareok.org/bitstream/handle/11244/19024/Thesis-1977-C523s.pdf|title=Racial Discrimination In Kenya During the Colonial Period|work=Ruth Catherine Cheruiyot Oklahoma State University, StillWater 1974|access-date=30 September 2018|archive-date=21 March 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230321003023/https://shareok.org/bitstream/handle/11244/19024/Thesis-1977-C523s.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref>

Kenya gained its independence in 1963. Under President [[Jomo Kenyatta]], the Kenyan government promoted [[africanisation]] of the Kenyan economy,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://siteresources.worldbank.org/INTAFRICA/Resources/257994-1335471959878/Sessional-Paper-No-10-(1965).pdf|title=Sessional-Paper-No-10(1965) African Socialism and its Application to Planning in Kenya|work=Tom Mboya and Mwai Kibaki-Kenya Government 1965|access-date=30 September 2018|archive-date=11 February 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200211204556/http://siteresources.worldbank.org/INTAFRICA/Resources/257994-1335471959878/Sessional-Paper-No-10-(1965).pdf|url-status=live}}</ref> generating rapid economic growth through public investment, encouragement of [[smallholding|smallholder]] agricultural production, and incentives for private, often foreign, industrial investments. An influential sessional paper authored by [[Tom Mboya]] and [[Mwai Kibaki]] in 1965 stressed the need for Kenya to avoid both the capitalistic economy of the West and the communism of the East.<ref name=":0" /> The paper argued that Kenya should instead concentrate on African socialism, while avoiding linking Kenya's economic fortunes to any country or group of countries.<ref name=":0">{{cite web|url=http://siteresources.worldbank.org/INTAFRICA/Resources/257994-1335471959878/Sessional-Paper-No-10-(1965).pdf|title=Sessional-Paper-No-10 (1965) African Socialism and its Application to Planning in Kenya pg 16, Relationship With Other Countries|work=Kenya Government 1965|access-date=30 September 2018|archive-date=11 February 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200211204556/http://siteresources.worldbank.org/INTAFRICA/Resources/257994-1335471959878/Sessional-Paper-No-10-(1965).pdf|url-status=live}}</ref> From 1963 to 1973, GDP grew at an annual average rate of 6.6%; during the 1970s, it grew at an average rate of 7.2%. Agricultural production grew by 4.7% annually in the same period, stimulated by redistributing estates, distributing new crop strains, and opening new areas to cultivation. However, the rate of GDP growth declined to 4.2% per year in the 1980s, and 2.2% a year in the 1990s.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.brookings.edu/~/media/research/files/papers/2016/05/16-kenya-country-case-study/kenya-country-case.pdf|title=The African Lions: Kenya country case study|author1=MWANGI S. KIMENYI|author2=FRANCIS M. MWEGA|author3=NJUGUNA S. NDUNG'U|date=May 2016|publisher=The Brookings Institution|access-date=23 May 2016|archive-date=27 May 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160527210738/http://www.brookings.edu/~/media/research/files/papers/2016/05/16-kenya-country-case-study/kenya-country-case.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref>

Kenya's policy of [[Import substitution industrialization|import substitution]], which started in 1946 with European and Asian enterprises, did not achieve the desired result of transforming Kenya's industrial base. In the late 1970s, rising oil prices began to make Kenya's manufacturing sector noncompetitive.<ref>{{cite journal|url=https://opendocs.ids.ac.uk/opendocs/handle/123456789/754|title=The effects of import-substitution: the case of Kenya's manufacturing sector|journal=Meilink, Henk A. (1982) Nairobi: Institute for Development Studies, University of Nairobi|access-date=30 September 2018|date=June 1982|last1=Meilink|first1=Henk A.|archive-date=30 September 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180930194625/https://opendocs.ids.ac.uk/opendocs/handle/123456789/754|url-status=live}}</ref> In response, the government began a massive intervention in the private sector. Lack of export incentives, tight import controls, and foreign exchange controls made the domestic environment for investment even less attractive.<ref name=":1" />

In the 1980s and 1990s, Kenya signed structural adjustment loans with the World Bank and IMF, the loans were to be given on the condition that Kenya adopts government reforms, a liberal trade and interest rate regime, and an outward-oriented industrial policy, among other reforms.<ref name="oxfordbusinessgroup.com">{{Cite web |date=2018-11-05 |title=Conditions for economic growth have improved in Kenya, but challenges remain |url=https://oxfordbusinessgroup.com/overview/next-level-conditions-growth-have-improved-though-challenges-remain-reduce-deficit-and-support |access-date=2020-12-07 |website=Oxford Business Group |language=en |archive-date=26 December 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201226223854/https://oxfordbusinessgroup.com/overview/next-level-conditions-growth-have-improved-though-challenges-remain-reduce-deficit-and-support |url-status=live }}</ref> The Kenyan economy performed very poorly during this era of World Bank and IMF-driven liberalisation at the height of [[Daniel Arap Moi]] administration.<ref>{{cite web |title=Kenya's Trade Liberalization of the 1980s and 1990s:Policies, Impacts, and Implications |url=https://carnegieendowment.org/files/kenya_background.pdf |access-date=10 March 2022 |work=Carnegie Endowment For International Peace |archive-date=11 August 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210811120449/https://carnegieendowment.org/files/kenya_background.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref>

From 1991 to 1993, Kenya had its worst economic performance since independence. Growth in GDP stagnated, and agricultural production shrank at an annual rate of 3.9%. Inflation reached a record of 100% in August 1993, and the government's budget deficit was over 10% of GDP.<ref name=":1">{{cite web|url=https://2009-2017.state.gov/outofdate/bgn/kenya/201469.htm|title=Kenya (05/07/12)|work=U.S. Department of State|access-date=11 June 2015|archive-date=30 July 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200730231627/https://2009-2017.state.gov/outofdate/bgn/kenya/201469.htm|url-status=live}}</ref> As a result of these issues, bilateral and multilateral donors suspended their aid programmes in Kenya in 1991.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1991/11/27/world/aid-donors-insist-on-kenya-reforms.html|title=Aid Donors Insist on Kenya Reforms|work=New York Times Archives STEVEN GREENHOUSE 27 NOV. 1991|access-date=30 September 2018|date=1991-11-27|last1=Greenhouse|first1=Steven|archive-date=2 September 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200902043628/https://www.nytimes.com/1991/11/27/world/aid-donors-insist-on-kenya-reforms.html|url-status=live}}</ref>

In 1993, the Kenyan government began a major programme of economic reform and [[liberalisation]]. A new minister of finance and a new governor of the [[central bank]] undertook a series of economic measures with the assistance of the [[World Bank]] and the [[International Monetary Fund]] (IMF). The government eliminated [[price controls]] and import licensing, removed [[foreign exchange controls]], [[privatised]] a number of publicly owned companies, reduced the number of civil servants, and introduced conservative fiscal and monetary policies. From 1994 to 1996, Kenya's real GDP growth rate averaged just over 4% a year.<ref>{{cite book| author = David Bigman| title = Globalization and the Developing Countries: Emerging Strategies for Rural Development and Poverty Alleviation| url = https://books.google.com/books?id=QKFCo5ajRCcC&pg=PA136| year = 2002| publisher = CABI| isbn = 978-0-85199-575-5| page = 136 }}</ref>

[[File:GPD per capita development of Kenya.svg|thumb|450px|Kenya's economic performance since independence.|alt=]]

In 1997, however, the economy entered a period of slow growth, due in part to adverse weather conditions and reduced economic activity before the general elections in December 1997. In July 1997, the Government of Kenya refused to meet earlier commitments to the IMF on [[governance]] reforms.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/nairobi-halts-imf-and-world-bank-reforms-president-moi-says-it-is-impossible-for-kenya-to-meet-the-1499533.html|title=Nairobi halts IMF and World Bank reforms|work=independent.co.uk|access-date=30 September 2018|date=1993-03-24|archive-date=4 December 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201204092352/https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/nairobi-halts-imf-and-world-bank-reforms-president-moi-says-it-is-impossible-for-kenya-to-meet-the-1499533.html|url-status=live}}</ref> As a result, the IMF suspended lending for three years, and the World Bank put a $90 million [[structural adjustment]] credit on hold.<ref name="allafrica.com">{{cite web|url=https://allafrica.com/stories/200101180259.html|title=Kenya: World Bank, IMF Suspend Financial Aid to Kenya|work=allafrica.com|access-date=30 September 2018|archive-date=1 August 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200801122032/https://allafrica.com/stories/200101180259.html|url-status=live}}</ref>

The Kenyan government subsequently took positive steps on reform, including the establishment of the [[Kenya Anti-Corruption Authority]] in 1997. The state also implemented measures to improve the transparency of government procurement and reduce the government payroll. In July 2000, the IMF signed a $150 million Poverty Reduction and Growth Facility, and the [[World Bank]] followed shortly after with a $157 million Economic and Public Sector Reform credit. However, both were eventually suspended.<ref name="allafrica.com"/> Despite setbacks, the process of reform established Kenya as East Africa's economic powerhouse and the region's business hub.<ref name="oxfordbusinessgroup.com"/>

Economic growth improved between 2003 and 2008, under the [[Mwai Kibaki]] administration.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://siteresources.worldbank.org/KENYAEXTN/Resources/ERS.pdf|title=ECONOMIC RECOVERY STRATEGY FOR WEALTH AND EMPLOYMENT CREATION 2003 - 2007|work=Kenya Government 2003|access-date=30 September 2018|archive-date=19 July 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200719125641/http://message.worldbank.org/isp_error_page.htm|url-status=live}}</ref> When Kibaki took power in 2003, he immediately established the National Debt Management Department at the treasury, reformed the [[Kenya Revenue Authority]] (KRA) to increase government revenue, reformed financial laws on banking, wrote off the debts of strategic public enterprises, and ensured that 30% of government tax revenue was invested in economic development projects. With these reforms, driven by the [[National Rainbow Coalition]] government, the KRA collected more tax revenue in 2004 than was anticipated. The government then initiated investments in infrastructure. By 2005, the Kenyan public debt had reduced from highs of 80% of GDP in 2002 to 27% of GDP in 2005. The financial sector greatly improved, and [[Equity Bank Kenya]] became one of the largest banks in East Africa. Economic growth improved from 2% in 2003 to 7% in 2007.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://vision2030.go.ke/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/Vision-2030-Popular-Version.pdf|title=Kenya Vision 2030|work=Kenya Government 2007|access-date=30 September 2018|archive-date=30 July 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200730224202/http://vision2030.go.ke/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/Vision-2030-Popular-Version.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref> In 2008, the growth slumped to 1%<ref>{{cite web|url=https://ke.boell.org/sites/default/files/uploads/2013/02/election_dispatch_six.pdf|title=The Impact of Election (2007/2008) Violence on Kenya's Economy: Lessons Learned?|work=Dr. Kiti Reginah M.K Kitiabi (PhD), ke.boell.org|access-date=30 September 2018|archive-date=30 July 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200730235451/https://ke.boell.org/sites/default/files/uploads/2013/02/election_dispatch_six.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref> due to [[2007–2008 Kenyan crisis|post-election violence]] before returning to an average of 5% between 2009 and 2013.<ref>{{Cite web | url=https://www.knbs.or.ke/download/economic-survey-2018/ | title=Economic Survey 2018 | access-date=30 September 2018 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180930120021/https://www.knbs.or.ke/download/economic-survey-2018/ | archive-date=30 September 2018 | url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://newafricanmagazine.com/news-analysis/politics/kenya-after-kibaki/|title=Kenya After Kibaki|date=2012-05-08|work=New African Magazine|access-date=24 March 2019|archive-date=24 March 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190324094318/https://newafricanmagazine.com/news-analysis/politics/kenya-after-kibaki/|url-status=live}}</ref> However, in 2009, due to drought and the [[2008 financial crisis]], high input costs as well as a fall in demand for some of the country's exports caused the agriculture sector to contract by 2.7%.

Between 2013 and 2018, under the [[Jubilee Party]] government led by [[Uhuru Kenyatta]], the GDP growth averaged above 5%.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.worldbank.org/en/country/kenya/overview|title=Kenya Overview 2013-2018|work=World Bank|access-date=30 September 2018|archive-date=23 December 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201223112449/https://www.worldbank.org/en/country/kenya/overview|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.knbs.or.ke/download/economic-survey-2018/?wpdmdl=4856&ind=NqCti4zG9i8MCZGvGUmRHsMzDNPGBToCfxmPbYsi3W8iViyAJeRSC1yuQW_6AjGFVdTXfv-Z8p1Q6fv0rSCNAQ|title=Kenya Economic Survey 2018|work=KNBS, REPUBLIC OF KENYA|access-date=24 March 2019|date=2018-04-25}}{{Dead link|date=November 2019 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref> Growth in small businesses is credited with some of the improvement.<ref>[http://www.inwent.org/ez/articles/192561/index.en.shtml KenInvest supports small businesses to become engines of growth in Kenya {{!}} dandc.eu] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110809095903/http://www.inwent.org/ez/articles/192561/index.en.shtml|date=9 August 2011}}</ref> Real GDP growth (annualised) was 5.7% in Q1 of 2018, 6.0% in Q2 2018 and 6.2% in Q3 2018.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/766271538749794576/pdf/Kenya-Economic-Update-18-FINAL.pdf|title=Kenya Economic Update:Kenya's Economy Poised to Rebound in 2018 and Remain Robust through 2020|date=2018-10-11|work=World Bank|access-date=24 March 2019|archive-date=26 November 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191126104951/http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/766271538749794576/pdf/Kenya-Economic-Update-18-FINAL.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref> Despite this robust growth, concerns remained about Kenya's debt sustainability, current account deficit, fiscal consolidation and revenue growth.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.treasury.go.ke/component/jdownloads/send/203-budget-policy-statement/1348-2019-budget-policy-statement.html|title=2019 BUDGET POLICY STATEMENT|date=2019-02-11|work=The National Treasury, Republic of Kenya|access-date=24 March 2019|archive-date=21 December 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191221050413/http://treasury.go.ke/component/jdownloads/send/203-budget-policy-statement/1348-2019-budget-policy-statement.html|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://cytonn.com/uploads/downloads/the-draft-2019-budget-policy-statement-note.pdf|title=The Draft 2019 Budget Policy Statement Note|date=2019-02-11|work=Cytonn Kenya|access-date=24 March 2019|archive-date=30 July 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200730230640/https://cytonn.com/uploads/downloads/the-draft-2019-budget-policy-statement-note.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref>

The table below shows the GDP of Kenya [http://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/weo/2006/01/data/dbcselm.cfm?G=2001 estimated] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100611172746/http://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/weo/2006/01/data/dbcselm.cfm?G=2001 |date=11 June 2010 }} by the International Monetary Fund, with exchange rates for [[Kenyan shilling]]s.
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Year || Nominal GDP(USD) || US Dollar Exchange
|-
| 1980 || 7.265 billion || 7.42 shillings
|-
| 1985 || 6.135 billion || 16.43 shillings
|-
| 1990 || 8.591 billion || 22.86 shillings
|-
| 1995 || 9.046 billion || 50.42 shillings
|-
| 2000 || 12.71 billion || 78.58 shillings
|-
| 2005 || 18.74 billion || 75.55 shillings
|-
| 2010 || 40 billion || 78.90 shillings
|-
| 2015 || 63.77 billion || 96.85 shillings
|-
| 2020 || 101.1 billion || 107 shillings 
|}

==Vision 2030 plan==
{{Further|Kenya Vision 2030}}

Vision 2030 is Kenya's current blueprint for its economic future, with the goal of creating a prosperous, globally-competitive nation with a high quality of life by 2030. The plan aims to transform Kenyan industry and environment in three pillars: economic, social, and political.<ref>Vision 2030 http://www.vision2030.go.ke/index.php {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121215142540/http://www.vision2030.go.ke/index.php |date=15 December 2012 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=http://kessa.org/yahoo_site_admin/assets/docs/3_A_Gitonga.140120221.pdf |title=Archived copy |access-date=28 November 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130606061235/http://kessa.org/yahoo_site_admin/assets/docs/3_A_Gitonga.140120221.pdf |archive-date=6 June 2013 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

===Economic pillar===
Vision 2030 seeks economic growth averaging greater than 10% for 23 years, beginning in the year 2007. Economic areas targeted are tourism, agriculture, wholesale and retail trade, manufacturing, IT-enabled services, and financial services.<ref>"The Economic Pillar" http://www.vision2030.go.ke/index.php/pillars {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121215133102/http://www.vision2030.go.ke/index.php/pillars |date=15 December 2012 }}. Retrieved 25 November 2012</ref>

===Social pillar===
To improve the quality of life for Kenyans, Vision 2030 aims to improve human and social welfare programmes, specifically education and training, health, environment, housing and urbanisation, children and social development, and youth and sports.<ref>"The Social Pillar" http://www.vision2030.go.ke/index.php/pillars/index/social {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121215134236/http://www.vision2030.go.ke/index.php/pillars/index/social |date=15 December 2012 }}. Retrieved 25 November 2012</ref> In 2018, President [[Uhuru Kenyatta]] established the [[Kenya Vision 2030|Big Four Agenda]], focusing on universal healthcare, manufacturing, affordable housing and food security.

===Political pillar===
The political pillar envisions a "democratic system that is issue-based, transparent, people-centred, results-oriented, and accountable to the public". It targets five main areas: the rule of law under the [[Constitution of Kenya]], electoral and political processes, democracy and public service delivery, transparency and accountability, and security, peace building, and conflict management.<ref>"The Political Pillar" http://www.vision2030.go.ke/index.php/pillars/index/political {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121215132236/http://www.vision2030.go.ke/index.php/pillars/index/political |date=15 December 2012 }}. Retrieved 26 November 2012</ref>

The current [[Constitution of Kenya]] was inaugurated on 27 August 2010 to drive this pillar.<ref>{{Cite news |date=2010-08-26 |title=Kenya's new constitution sparks hopes of rebirth |language=en-GB |work=BBC News |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-11103008 |access-date=2023-08-11 |archive-date=24 April 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210424180049/https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-11103008 |url-status=live }}</ref>

==Currency, exchange rate, and inflation==
Kenya's currency is printed by mandate of the [[Central Bank of Kenya]].<ref name="The National Treasury">{{cite web|url=http://www.treasury.go.ke/media-centre/news-updates/274-central-bank-of-kenya-set-to-release-details-of-new-look-currency-this-week.html|title=Central Bank of Kenya Set To Release Details of New Look Currency This Week|work=The National Treasury|access-date=8 August 2019|date=2019-08-08|archive-date=4 August 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200804180920/https://www.treasury.go.ke/media-centre/news-updates/274-central-bank-of-kenya-set-to-release-details-of-new-look-currency-this-week.html|url-status=dead}}</ref> The bank began printing banknotes in 1996. Several versions of Kenya's banknotes and coinage have been circulated since then. The most recent redesign of Kenya's currency was in 2019.<ref name="The National Treasury"/>

The [[exchange rate]] of the Kenyan Shilling between 2003 and 2010 averaged about KSh74-78 per US Dollar.<ref>{{cite book| author = Daniel Branch| title = Kenya: Between Hope and Despair, 1963–2011| date = 15 November 2011| publisher = Yale University Press| isbn = 978-0-300-14876-3 }}</ref> Exchange Rate in the first half of 2025 averaged 128 KSh to USD.  Currency values in Kenya and elsewhere are influenced by different factors in the short run and long run, and these dynamics are shaped by the country’s choice of exchange rate regime, participation in monetary unions, and vulnerability to currency crises.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Kenya USD Exchange rate, June, 2025 - data, chart |url=https://www.theglobaleconomy.com/Kenya/Dollar_exchange_rate/ |access-date=2025-07-05 |website=TheGlobalEconomy.com |language=en}}</ref>   Kenya’s shilling, for example, is officially market-driven but does not float freely. The Central Bank of Kenya frequently intervenes to influence its value, using foreign currency reserves to stabilize the exchange rate<ref>{{Cite web |last=Kodongo |first=Odongo |date=2024-04-16 |title=Kenya's shilling is regaining value, but don't expect it to last - expert |url=http://theconversation.com/kenyas-shilling-is-regaining-value-but-dont-expect-it-to-last-expert-227386 |access-date=2025-07-05 |website=The Conversation |language=en-US}}</ref>

The average inflation between 2005 and July 2015 was 8.5%.<ref>{{Cite web|title = Inflation Rates|url = https://www.centralbank.go.ke/index.php/balance-of-payment-statistics/inflationrates|website = www.centralbank.go.ke|access-date = 2015-09-14|first = Nyamu|last = S.|url-status = dead|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20151016002246/https://www.centralbank.go.ke/index.php/balance-of-payment-statistics/inflationrates|archive-date = 16 October 2015}}</ref> In July 2015 Kenya's inflation rate was estimated to be 6.62%.<ref>Kenya Inflation Rate {{cite web |url=http://www.knbs.or.ke/cpi/cpi062012.pdf |title=Archived copy |access-date=2012-11-28 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121113152356/http://www.knbs.or.ke/cpi/cpi062012.pdf |archive-date=13 November 2012}}{{cite web |url=https://www.centralbank.go.ke/index.php/balance-of-payment-statistics/inflationrates |title=Inflation Rates |access-date=2015-09-14 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151016002246/https://www.centralbank.go.ke/index.php/balance-of-payment-statistics/inflationrates |archive-date=16 October 2015}}</ref>

==Government finances==

=== Revenue and spending ===
In 2006, Kenyan government revenue totalled US$4.448B and its estimated expenditures totalled US$5.377B. The government budget balance as a percentage of the gross domestic product improved to −2.1% in 2006 from −5.5% in 2004.<ref name="cp">[http://lcweb2.loc.gov/frd/cs/profiles/Kenya.pdf Kenya country profile] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150505051609/http://lcweb2.loc.gov/frd/cs/profiles/Kenya.pdf |date=5 May 2015 }}. [[Library of Congress]] [[Federal Research Division]] (June 2007). ''This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the [[public domain]].''</ref>

In 2012, Kenya set a budget of US$14.59B with a government revenue of approximately US$12B.<ref>Kenya Budget http://www.pwc.com/ke/en/pdf/kenya-budget-2012-revenue-and-expenditure-highlights.pdf {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200804162420/https://www.pwc.com/ke/en/pdf/kenya-budget-2012-revenue-and-expenditure-highlights.pdf |date=4 August 2020 }}</ref>

The 2018 budget policy report set a budget of US$30B. The government revenue was approximately US$29.5B, and a deficit of US$5B was borrowed.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.treasury.go.ke/component/jdownloads/send/195-budget-policy-statement/732-2018-budget-policy-statement.html?option=com_jdownloads|title=2018 BUDGET POLICY STATEMENT|work=THE NATIONAL TREASURY, REPUBLIC OF KENYA|access-date=24 March 2019|date=2018-02-01}}{{dead link|date=July 2022|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}</ref>

In the financial year that ended in June 2020, the [[Kenya Revenue Authority]] collected a tax revenue that amounted to approximately US$15B.<ref>{{cite web| url = https://www.kra.go.ke/en/media-center/press-release/916-annual-revenue-performance-fy-2019-2020| url-status = dead| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20210414143803/https://www.kra.go.ke/en/media-center/press-release/916-annual-revenue-performance-fy-2019-2020| archive-date = 14 April 2021| title = ANNUAL REVENUE PERFORMANCE FY 2019/2020 - KRA}}</ref>

=== Government debt ===
From 1982, Kenya key public debt indicators rose above critical levels, both measured as a percentage of GDP and as a percentage of government revenue.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://erepository.uonbi.ac.ke/bitstream/handle/11295/98782/Kobey_Effect+Of+Public+Debt+On+Economic+Growth+In+Kenya.pdf?sequence=1|title=EFFECT OF PUBLIC DEBT ON ECONOMIC GROWTH IN KENYA|work=GIDEON LEDAMA KOBEY, University of Nairobi|access-date=24 March 2019|date=2016-11-01|archive-date=30 July 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200730223329/http://erepository.uonbi.ac.ke/bitstream/handle/11295/98782/Kobey_Effect+Of+Public+Debt+On+Economic+Growth+In+Kenya.pdf?sequence=1|url-status=live}}</ref>

In 2002, the last year of [[Daniel arap Moi]]'s administration, Kenya' s public debt stood at almost 80% of GDP. In the last 10 years of the Moi regime, the government was spending 94% of all its revenue on salaries and debt servicing to the IMF, World Bank and other western countries.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.ieakenya.or.ke/downloads.php?page=Budget-Guide-2001---2002.pdf|title=Where Will Our Money Go?Guide for Members of Parliament 2002|work=Institute of Economic Affairs, Kenya|access-date=24 March 2019|date=2001-06-01|archive-date=30 July 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200730221044/https://www.ieakenya.or.ke/downloads.php?page=Budget-Guide-2001---2002.pdf|url-status=dead}}</ref>

In 2003, [[Mwai Kibaki]]'s administration instituted a public debt management department within the treasury department to bring Kenya's debt down to sustainable levels.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.treasury.go.ke/publications/category/40-annual-public-debt.html?download=140:annual-public-debt-report-2005-2006|title=ANNUAL PUBLIC DEBT MANAGEMENT REPORT 2005|work=Debt Management Department, Kenya National Treasury|access-date=24 March 2019|date=2005-06-01|archive-date=4 August 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200804104438/https://www.treasury.go.ke/publications/category/40-annual-public-debt.html?download=140:annual-public-debt-report-2005-2006|url-status=dead}}</ref>

In 2006, Kenya had a current account deficit of US$1.5B. This figure was a significant increase over 2005, when the current account had a deficit of US$495 million. In 2006, the current account balance as a percentage of gross domestic product was −4.2.<ref name=cp/>

In 2006, Kenya's external debt totalled US$6.7B. With a GDP of US$25.83B in 2006, the public debt level stood at 27% of GDP.<ref name=cp/>

In 2011, the national treasury noted that the debt was rising, growing to 40% of GDP in 2009 and to 54% of GDP by 2012.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.treasury.go.ke/economy/category/40-annual-public-debt.html?download=144:annual-public-debt-report-2010-2011|title=ANNUAL PUBLIC DEBT MANAGEMENT REPORT 2011|work=Debt Management Department, Kenya National Treasury|access-date=24 March 2019|date=2012-06-01|archive-date=5 August 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200805042434/https://www.treasury.go.ke/economy/category/40-annual-public-debt.html?download=144:annual-public-debt-report-2010-2011|url-status=dead}}</ref>

In 2019, Kenya's debt had risen to an absolute amount of US$50B against a GDP of US$98B. The public debt level was 51% of GDP in 2019.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.centralbank.go.ke/public-debt/|title=Kenya Public Debt|work=Central Bank of Kenya|access-date=24 March 2019|date=2018-09-01|archive-date=1 November 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201101051127/https://www.centralbank.go.ke/public-debt/|url-status=live}}</ref>

In 2021, Kenya's debt had risen to an absolute amount of US$65B against a GDP of US$101B.The public debt level was 65% of GDP in 2021.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.parliament.go.ke/sites/default/files/2021-02/2021%20MEDIUM%20TERM%20DEBT%20MANAGEMENT.pdf|title=Kenya Public Debt|work=The National Treasury|access-date=12 April 2021|date=2021-02-15|archive-date=12 April 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210412201652/http://www.parliament.go.ke/sites/default/files/2021-02/2021%20MEDIUM%20TERM%20DEBT%20MANAGEMENT.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.parliament.go.ke/sites/default/files/2021-02/PUBLIC%20DEBT%20MANAGEMENT%20REOPRT%20FOR%202019%20-%202020%281%29.pdf|title=ANNUAL PUBLIC DEBT MANAGEMENT REPORT,2020|work=The National Treasury, October 2020|access-date=4 May 2021|archive-date=4 May 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210504225455/http://www.parliament.go.ke/sites/default/files/2021-02/PUBLIC%20DEBT%20MANAGEMENT%20REOPRT%20FOR%202019%20-%202020(1).pdf|url-status=live}}</ref>

Kenya's largest bilateral lender since 2011 has been [[China]], and the largest multilateral lender since 1963 has been the [[World Bank]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.businessdailyafrica.com/economy/3946234-5002842-yyabe7/index.html|title=China Top Creditor For Kenya|work=Business Daily Africa|access-date=24 March 2019|date=2019-02-28|archive-date=30 July 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200730220240/https://www.businessdailyafrica.com/economy/3946234-5002842-yyabe7/index.html|url-status=live}}</ref>

In April 2025, Kenya secured $600 million in short-term financing from commercial banks to support road construction projects, amid persistent budgetary pressures stemming from sluggish tax revenue growth, high debt servicing costs, and increased spending obligations, including at the county level.<ref name=":3">{{Cite web |last=Miriri |first=Duncan |date=16 April 2025 |title=Kenya secures $600 million in short-term financing for roads |url=https://www.reuters.com/world/africa/kenya-secures-600-million-short-term-financing-roads-2025-04-16/ |access-date=23 April 2025 |website=Reuters}}</ref> The financing, backed by securitised collections from the national fuel levy, set at 18 Kenyan shillings (approximately $0.14) per litre, was arranged through the [[List of roads in Kenya|Kenya Roads Board]] to enable access to more affordable credit.<ref name=":3" /> According to [[John Mbadi|Finance Minister John Mbadi]], the funds will be directed toward paying contractors for urgent road maintenance while the government continues to pursue a larger funding arrangement, potentially a $1.5 billion privately placed bond or syndicated loan.<ref name=":3" /> This initiative complements broader efforts by [[William Ruto|President William Ruto]]’s administration, which came into office in September 2022, to address infrastructure financing gaps. Separately, Kenya plans to issue Africa’s first sustainability-linked bond by November 2025, targeting $500 million to support the national budget and contribute to environmental, social, and energy-related goals. This move is part of the government's strategy to manage an anticipated budget deficit of 3.9% of GDP for the fiscal year ending June 2025.<ref>{{Cite news |date=2024-04-17 |title=Kenya to Be First in Africa to Sell Sustainability-Linked Bond |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2024-04-17/kenya-to-debut-500-million-sustainability-linked-bond |access-date=2024-04-17 |work=Bloomberg.com |language=en |archive-date=27 April 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240427211256/https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2024-04-17/kenya-to-debut-500-million-sustainability-linked-bond |url-status=live }}</ref>

===Economic Stimulus Programme===
{{Main|Kenya Economic Stimulus Program}}
The [[Kenya Economic Stimulus Programme]] was introduced in the 2010–2011 budget plan.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://teyie.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/kenya_2010-2011-BudgetSpeech-Distribution-Final.pdf|title=Budget Speech for the Fiscal Year 2010/2011|last=Kenyatta|first=Uhuru Muigai|date=10 June 2010|website=Wayback Machine|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110830174357/http://teyie.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/kenya_2010-2011-BudgetSpeech-Distribution-Final.pdf|archive-date=30 August 2011}}</ref> The initiative aimed to stimulate economic activity in Kenya through investment in long-term solutions to food insecurity, rural unemployment and underdevelopment. Stated improvement objectives included regional development for equity and social stability, infrastructure, education, affordable health-care, environmental conservation, [[information and communications technology]] capacity, and access to IT.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.economicstimulus.go.ke/index.php?option%3Dcom_content%26view%3Darticle%26id%3D102%26Itemid%3D226 |access-date=10 September 2015 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120405063226/http://www.economicstimulus.go.ke/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=102&Itemid=226 |archive-date=5 April 2012 }}</ref>

===Integrated Financial Management Information System===
The Integrated Financial Management Information System (IFMIS) was launched in 2003 as a digital platform for Kenya's financial information and services, and was later re-engineered by the Ministry of Finance to curb fraud and other malpractices.<ref>{{cite web |title=Republic of Kenya: Ministry of Finance |url=http://www.finance.go.ke/index.php?option=com_content&view=category&layout=blog&id=104&Itemid=153 |access-date=2 August 2011 |publisher=Finance.go.ke}}{{Dead link|date=September 2018|bot=InternetArchiveBot|fix-attempted=yes}}</ref> IFMIS enables integrated budget planning, being linked to planning policy objectives and budget allocation.<ref>{{cite web |author=Nicholas Kerandi (nkerandi@netmedia.co.ke) |url=http://www.pfmr.go.ke/news_details.php?id=30 |title=IFMIS re-engineered to revitalize public financial management |publisher=Pfmr.go.ke |access-date=2 August 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120325190123/http://www.pfmr.go.ke/news_details.php?id=30 |archive-date=25 March 2012 |url-status=dead}}</ref>

===Funds for the Inclusion of Informal Sector===
The Fund for the Inclusion of Informal Sector (FIIS) is a fund that allows businesses in the informal economy to access credit financing and other facilities, including financial and banking services.<ref>{{cite web |title=Capital Business |url=http://www.capitalfm.co.ke/business/Kenyabusiness/Sh3.8b-Fund-to-propel-MSE-sector-5714.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110505063815/http://www.capitalfm.co.ke/business/Kenyabusiness/Sh3.8b-Fund-to-propel-MSE-sector-5714.html |archive-date=5 May 2011 |access-date=2 August 2011 |publisher=Capitalfm.co.ke}}</ref>

===Investor compensation fund===
The Investor Compensation Fund compensates investors who suffer losses from breaches of duty by a licensed stockbroker or dealer, up to a maximum of Sh.50,000 per investor.<ref>{{Cite web|title=CMA's investor compensation fund shrinks|url=https://www.standardmedia.co.ke/article/2000036152/cmas-investor-compensation-fund-shrinks|last=Digital|first=Standard|website=The Standard|language=en|access-date=2020-05-29|archive-date=4 August 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200804192800/https://www.standardmedia.co.ke/financial-standard/article/2000036152/cmas-investor-compensation-fund-shrinks|url-status=live}}</ref>

==Foreign economic relations==
[[File:2006Kenyan exports.PNG|thumb|450px|Kenyan exports.]]

Foreign investments in Kenya remain relatively weak considering the size of its economy and its level of development. As of 2022, Kenya's total FDI stock stood at USD 10.4 billion, accounting for a mere 9.5% of the country’s GDP.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Foreign direct investment (FDI) in Kenya - International Trade Portal |url=https://www.lloydsbanktrade.com/en/market-potential/kenya/investment |access-date=2024-03-09 |website=www.lloydsbanktrade.com |language=en |archive-date=2 March 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240302151403/https://www.lloydsbanktrade.com/en/market-potential/kenya/investment |url-status=live }}</ref>

Investments come from China, Japan, Russia, the United States, and the United Kingdom, among others. Kenya hosts a number of foreign multinational companies and international organisations such as the [[United Nations Environment Programme]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.italafricacentrale.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=40&Itemid=99&lang=en|title=Kenya Economy|last=Mariarosaria|website=italafricacentrale.com|language=en-gb|access-date=2018-10-29|archive-date=30 July 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200730224702/http://www.italafricacentrale.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=40&Itemid=99&lang=en|url-status=dead}}</ref> China's investments have been increasing, while those of western countries such as the United Kingdom has fallen significantly. Investments from multilateral agencies, particularly the [[World Bank]] and the [[European Development Fund]], have also increased. The most active investors currently are the [[Africa-China Relations|Chinese]].

Kenya is active within regional trade blocs such as the [[Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa]] and the [[East African Community]], a partnership of [[Kenya]], [[Uganda]], [[Tanzania]], [[Rwanda]], [[Burundi]] and [[South Sudan]]. The aim of the latter is to create a common market of its member states modelled on the [[European Union]].<ref name="cp" /> Among the early steps toward integration is the bloc's [[customs union]], which has eliminated duties on goods and non-tariff trade barriers among members.

=== Exports ===
Kenya's chief exports are horticultural products and tea. In 2005, the combined value of these commodities was US$1,150 million, about 10 times the value of Kenya's third most valuable export, coffee. Kenya's other significant exports are petroleum products, fish, cement, pyrethrum, and sisal. The leading imports are crude petroleum, chemicals, manufactured goods, machinery, and transportation equipment. Africa is Kenya's largest export market, followed by the European Union.<ref name=cp/>

The major destinations for exports are Uganda, Tanzania, the United Kingdom, and the Netherlands. Major suppliers are China, India, the [[United Arab Emirates]], Saudi Arabia, and South Africa. Kenya's main exports to the United States are garments traded under the terms of the African Growth and Opportunity Act. Notwithstanding this, Kenya's apparel industry is struggling to hold its ground against Asian competition and runs a trade deficit with the United States. Many of Kenya's problems relating to the export of goods are believed by economists to be caused by the fact that Kenya's exports are inexpensive items that do not bring substantial amounts of money into the country.<ref name=cp/>

Kenya is the dominant trade partner for Uganda (12.3% exports, 15.6% imports) and [[Rwanda]] (30.5% exports, 17.3% imports).<ref>[https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/uganda/ The World Factbook] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210412232431/https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/uganda |date=12 April 2021 }} Uganda country profile, CIA World Factbook</ref><ref>[https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/rwanda/ The World Factbook] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210109091722/https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/rwanda |date=9 January 2021 }} Rwanda country profile, CIA World Fact book</ref>

=== Balance of trade ===
Kenya typically has a substantial trade deficit. The trade balance fluctuates widely because Kenya's main exports are primary commodities subject to the effects of both world prices and weather. In 2005 Kenya's income from exports was about US$3.2 billion. The payment for imports was about US$5.7B, yielding a trade deficit of about US$2.5B.<ref name=cp/>

{| class="wikitable"
!Year
!Goods exports<br /><small>(million US$)</small><ref>{{Cite web |title=Goods exports (BoP, current US$) - Kenya |url=https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/BX.GSR.MRCH.CD?end=2023&locations=KE&most_recent_value_desc=true&start=1977 |access-date=2025-01-25 |website=World Bank Open Data}}</ref>
!Goods imports<br /><small>(in</small> <small>million US$)</small><ref>{{Cite web |title=Goods imports (BoP, current US$) - Kenya |url=https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/BM.GSR.MRCH.CD?end=2023&locations=KE&most_recent_value_desc=true&start=1977 |access-date=2025-01-25 |website=World Bank Open Data}}</ref>
!Net trade<br /><small>(in</small> <small>million US$)</small><ref>{{Cite web |title=Net trade in goods (BoP, current US$) - Kenya |url=https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/BN.GSR.MRCH.CD?end=2023&locations=KE&most_recent_value_desc=true&start=1977 |access-date=2025-01-25 |website=World Bank Open Data}}</ref>
|-
|2023
|{{Increase}}$7,220
|{{Increase}}$17,243
|{{Decrease}}−$10,023
|-
|2020
|{{Increase}}$6,052
|{{Increase}}$14,390
|{{Decrease}}−$8,338
|-
|2015
|{{Increase}}$5,970
|{{Increase}}$14,349
|{{Decrease}}−$8,379
|-
|2010
|{{Increase}}$5,211
|{{Increase}}$11,442
|{{Decrease}}−$6,231
|-
|2005
|{{Increase}}$3,459
|{{Increase}}$5,587
|{{Decrease}}−$2,127
|-
|2000
|{{Increase}}$1,778
|{{Increase}}$3,022
|{{Decrease}}−$1,243
|-
|1990
|{{Decrease}}$1,090
|{{Decrease}}$2,005
|{{Decrease}}−$915
|-
|1980
|$1,421
|$2,345
|{{Decrease}}−$923
|}

=== Foreign investment policies ===
Kenyan policies on foreign investment generally have been favourable since independence, with occasional tightening of restrictions to promote the africanisation of enterprises. Foreign investors have been guaranteed ownership and the right to remit [[dividend]]s, [[royalties]], and capital.<ref name=cp/>

Kenya is currently the most important source of foreign direct investments in Uganda and Rwanda. Uganda and its neighbouring regions are the main export destinations for Kenyan products.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Ngui |first1=Dianah |last2=Chege |first2=Jacob |last3=Kimuyu |first3=Peter |date=2016-07-28 |chapter=Kenya's Industrial Development: Policies, Performance, and Prospects |chapter-url=https://academic.oup.com/book/26774/chapter/195690704 |title=Manufacturing Transformation |language=en |doi=10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198776987.003.0004 |access-date=5 May 2023 |archive-date=5 May 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230505034935/https://academic.oup.com/book/26774/chapter/195690704 |url-status=live }}</ref> Kenya has had more success in growing its economy and quality of life levels than many of its neighbours in [[sub-Saharan Africa]].<ref name=cp/>

==Industries==

===Agriculture===
{{Main|Agriculture in Kenya}}
{{See also|Coffee industry of Kenya|Tea Production in Kenya}}
[[File:Kenya-Tealand-Near-Kericho-2012.JPG|thumb|right|Tea farm, [[Kericho County]]]]
[[File:Worker with Summer Flowers.jpg|thumb|Flower production]]
Kenya produced in 2018:

* 5.2 million tons of [[sugarcane]];
* 4 million tons of [[maize]];
* 1.8 million tons of [[potato]];
* 1.4 million tons of [[banana]];
* 946 thousand tons of [[cassava]];
* 871 thousand tons of [[sweet potato]];
* 775 thousand tons of [[mango]] (including [[mangosteen]] and [[guava]]);
* 765 thousand tons of [[beans]];
* 599 thousand tons of [[tomato]];
* 674 thousand tons of [[cabbage]];
* 492 thousand tons of [[tea]] (3rd largest producer in the world, losing only to China and India);
* 349 thousand tons of [[pineapple]];
* 336 thousand tons of [[wheat]];
* 239 thousand tons of [[carrot]];
* 233 thousand tons of [[avocado]];
* 206 thousand tons of [[sorghum]];
* 188 thousand tons of [[watermelon]];
* 179 thousand tons of [[cowpea]];
* 169 thousand tons of [[spinach]];
* 131 thousand tons of [[papaya]]; 
* 92 thousand tons of [[coconut]]; 
* and 41 thousand tons of [[coffee]].<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.fao.org/faostat/en/#data/QC/ |title=Kenya production in 2018, by FAO |access-date=31 October 2020 |archive-date=12 November 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161112130804/http://www.fao.org/faostat/en/#data/QC/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

Agriculture is the second largest contributor to Kenya's GDP, after the service sector, although only 15% of Kenya's total land area has sufficient [[fertility]] and rainfall to be farmed, and only 7 or 8% can be classified as first-class land. In 2006, almost 75% of working Kenyans made their living on the land, compared with 80% in 1980.<ref name="cp" /> About half of total agricultural output is non-marketed subsistence production.

In 2005, agriculture, including [[forestry]] and fishing, accounted for about 24% of GDP, as well as for 18% of wage employment and 50% of revenue from exports. That same year, horticulture accounted for 23% and tea for 22% of total export earnings. The principal cash crops in Kenyan agriculture are tea, horticultural produce, and coffee. Coffee has declined in importance with depressed world prices, accounting for just 5% of export receipts in 2005. The production of major food staples such as [[Maize|corn]] is subject to sharp weather-related fluctuations. Production downturns also periodically necessitate food aid. In 2004, aid was needed for 1.8 million people because of Kenya's intermittent [[droughts]]. However, the expansion of credit to the agricultural sector has enabled farmers to better deal with environmental and pricing risks.<ref name=cp/>

Tea, coffee, [[sisal]], [[pyrethrum]], corn, and wheat are grown in the fertile highlands, one of the most successful agricultural production regions in Africa. Livestock predominates in the semi-arid savanna to the north and east. [[Coconuts]], [[pineapples]], [[cashew nuts]], cotton, [[sugarcane]], [[sisal]], and [[Maize|corn]] are grown in the lower-lying areas.<ref name=cp/>

===Forestry and fishing===
Resource degradation has reduced output from forestry. In 2004, [[Wood production|roundwood]] removals came to 22,162,000 cubic meters. Fisheries are of local importance around [[Lake Victoria]] and have potential at [[Lake Turkana]]. Kenya's total catch in 2004 was 128,000 metric tons. However, output from fishing has been declining because of ecological disruption. Pollution, [[overfishing]], and the use of unauthorised fishing equipment have led to falling catches and have endangered local fish species.<ref name=cp/>

===Mining and minerals===
[[File:Soda train, Magadi, Kenya.jpg|300px|thumb|[[Soda ash]] train, [[Lake Magadi]], [[Kajiado County]]]]
Kenya has no significant mineral endowment. The mining and quarrying sector makes a negligible contribution to the economy, accounting for less than 1% of GDP. The majority of this is contributed by the [[soda ash]] operation at [[Lake Magadi]] in south-central Kenya. Thanks largely to rising soda ash output, Kenya's mineral production in 2005 reached more than 1 million tons. One of Kenya's largest foreign-investment projects in recent years is the planned expansion of Magadi Soda. Apart from soda ash, the chief minerals produced are [[limestone]], gold, salt, large quantities of [[niobium]], [[fluorspar]], and [[fossil fuel]].<ref name=cp/>

All unextracted minerals are government property, under the Mining Act. The Department of Mines and Geology, under the Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources, controls exploration and exploitation of minerals.<ref name=cp/>
{{Further|Mrima Hill mine}}

===Industry and manufacturing===
{{Main|Automotive industry in Kenya}}
Although Kenya is the most industrially developed country in East Africa, manufacturing still accounts for only 14% of GDP. This represents only a slight increase since independence. The rapid expansion of the sector immediately after independence stagnated in the 1980s, hampered by shortages in [[hydroelectric power]], high energy costs, dilapidated [[transport infrastructure]], and the dumping of cheap imports. However, due to urbanisation, the industry and manufacturing sectors have become increasingly important to the Kenyan economy, and this has been reflected by an increasing GDP per capita. Industrial activity, concentrated around the three largest urban centres, [[Nairobi]], [[Mombasa]], and [[Kisumu]], is dominated by food-processing industries such as grain milling, beer production, sugarcane crushing, and the fabrication of consumer goods. Kenya also has an [[oil refinery]] that processes imported crude petroleum into petroleum products, mainly for the domestic market. In addition, a substantial and expanding [[informal sector]] engages in small-scale manufacturing of household goods, motor-vehicle parts, and farm implements.<ref name=cp/>

Kenya's inclusion among the beneficiaries of the US Government's African Growth and Opportunity Act gave a boost to manufacturing. Since the Act took effect in 2000, Kenya's clothing sales to the United States increased from US$44 million to US$270M in 2006. Other initiatives to strengthen manufacturing include favourable tax measures, including the absence of duties for capital equipment and other raw materials.<ref name=cp/>

=== Energy===
{{Further|Energy in Kenya}}

The largest segment of Kenya's electricity supply comes from hydroelectric stations at dams along the upper [[Tana River (Kenya)|Tana River]], as well as the [[Turkwel Gorge Dam]] in the west. A petroleum-fired plant on the coast, geothermal facilities at [[Olkaria]], and electricity imported from [[Uganda]] make up the balance. Kenya's installed capacity stood at 1,142 [[megawatts]] a year between 2001 and 2003. The state-owned [[Kenya Electricity Generating Company]], established in 1997 under the name Kenya Power Company, handles the generation of electricity, while the [[Kenya Power and Lighting Company]] handles transmission and distribution.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.plc.co.ke/ |title=Unauthorized Access |access-date=11 December 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181106170811/http://plc.co.ke/ |archive-date=6 November 2018 |url-status=dead}}</ref> Shortfalls of electricity occur periodically when drought reduces water flow. In 1997 and 2000, for example, drought prompted severe power rationing, with economically-damaging 12-hour [[Rolling blackout|blackouts]]. Frequent outages and high costs of power remain serious obstacles to economic activity. Tax and other concessions are planned to encourage investment in hydroelectricity and in [[geothermal energy]], which Kenya has been a pioneer in adopting.<ref name=cp/>

Kenya currently imports all crude petroleum requirements, with petroleum accounting for 20% to 25% of the national import bill. [[Hydrocarbon]] reserves have been found in Kenya's semi-arid northern region of [[Turkana County|Turkana]] after several decades of intermittent exploration. Offshore prospecting also continues. [[Kenya Petroleum Refineries Limited|Kenya Petroleum Refineries]], a 50:50 joint venture between the government and several oil majors, operates the country's sole oil refinery in [[Mombasa]]. The refinery's production is transported via Kenya's Mombasa–Nairobi pipeline.<ref name="cp" /> However, the refinery is currently non-operational.{{When|date=September 2019}} In 2004, oil consumption was estimated at {{convert|55000|oilbbl}} a day.

{| class="wikitable"
|+Total energy consumption in [[Terrawatt-hour]]s (TWh) of Kenya<ref>{{Cite web |title=Primary energy consumption |url=https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/primary-energy-cons?tab=chart&country=~GHA |website=Our World in Data}}</ref>
!1980
!1990
!2000
!2010
!2020
!2021
|-
|29
|{{Increase}}36
|{{Increase}}46
|{{Increase}}67
|{{Increase}}99
|{{Increase}}104
|-
! colspan="6" |Per capita consumption in [[Kilowatt-hour]]s (KWh)<ref>{{Cite web |date= |title=Energy use per person |url=https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/per-capita-energy-use?showSelectionOnlyInTable=1&country=~KEN |website=Our World in Data}}</ref>
|-
|1,815 
|{{Decrease}}1,551 
|{{Decrease}}1,479 
|{{Increase}}1,623 
|{{Increase}}1,902 
|{{Increase}}1,953 
|}

=== Tourism ===
{{Main|Tourism in Kenya}}
[[File:Lady tour guide.jpg|thumb|left|Guided tours.]]
[[File:WaterLovers Beach Resort.jpg|thumb|WaterLovers Beach Resort, [[Diani Beach]].]]
Kenya's dependence on tourism has greatly reduced over the years. Tourism, both domestic and international, accounted for around 6% of Kenya’s economy in 2023.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Economic impact of the Tourism Sector: Tourism is a key economic driver and it is on the rise (GL) |url=https://www.southafrica.net/gl/en/trade/press/economic-impact-of-the-tourism-sector-tourism-is-a-key-economic-driver-and-it-is-on-the-rise |access-date=2025-05-17 |website=www.southafrica.net}}</ref> In 2019, foreign tourist revenues stood at $1.76 billion, accounting for only 1.6% of Kenya's GDP and approximately 12% of all international tourism receipts in Eastern Africa.<ref name="worlddata.info">{{Cite web |title=Development and importance of tourism for Kenya |url=https://www.worlddata.info/africa/kenya/tourism.php |access-date=2023-05-05 |website=Worlddata.info |language=en |archive-date=5 May 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230505022837/https://www.worlddata.info/africa/kenya/tourism.php |url-status=live }}</ref>

The growing middle class in Kenya has also led to a significant growth in domestic tourism over the years. This steady growth in domestic tourism has defied the turmoil of elections or terror attacks. In 2014, for the first time, Kenya National Bureau of Statistics data showed that the number of Kenyans accommodated in hotel rooms was higher than that of foreign tourists, pointing to the increasing significance of domestic tourism and highlighting the need for the government to focus on promoting domestic tourism over international visitors as a way of yielding more sustainable growth in the tourism sector<ref>{{Cite web |date=2020-12-18 |title=How focus on high-yield visitors is stunting Kenya's domestic tourism |url=https://www.businessdailyafrica.com/bd/corporate/industry/how-focus-on-high-yield-visitors-is-stunting-kenya-s-domestic-tourism-2171214 |access-date=2024-04-10 |website=Business Daily |language=en |archive-date=10 April 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240410020013/https://www.businessdailyafrica.com/bd/corporate/industry/how-focus-on-high-yield-visitors-is-stunting-kenya-s-domestic-tourism-2171214 |url-status=live }}</ref>

In 2018, domestic tourists’ bed occupancy accounted for 52.9% of the total bed occupancy in the country.<ref>{{Cite web |last=tourism_admin |title=Homepage |url=https://www.tourism.go.ke/ |access-date=2023-05-05 |website=Ministry of Tourism, Wildlife & Heritage |language=en-US |archive-date=1 May 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230501081849/https://www.tourism.go.ke/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

Kenya offers numerous large national parks in a wide variety of landscapes. Besides the coast, there are large deserts, steppes and mountains. The national parks and nature reserves contain the natural habitats of many animal species.<ref name="worlddata.info"/>

===Financial services===
Kenya is East Africa's hub for financial services. The [[Nairobi Stock Exchange]] (NSE) is ranked 4th in Africa in terms of market capitalisation.

The banking sector in Kenya is regulated by The Central Bank Of Kenya. Kenya's banking sector is mainly dominated by local commercial banks, namely Equity Bank, Kenya Commercial Bank, NCBA Bank, Diamond Trust Bank, Cooperative Bank, and National Bank. The Kenya Commercial Bank is the largest bank in Kenya by asset size and branch network as of 2023.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Ngugi |first=Brian |title=KCB overtakes Equity as Kenya's largest bank with Sh1.55tr assets |url=https://www.standardmedia.co.ke/business/business/article/2001472911/kcb-overtakes-equity-as-kenyas-largest-bank-with-sh155tr-assets |access-date=2023-06-05 |website=The Standard |language=en |archive-date=5 June 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230605022325/https://www.standardmedia.co.ke/business/business/article/2001472911/kcb-overtakes-equity-as-kenyas-largest-bank-with-sh155tr-assets |url-status=live }}</ref>

Kenya enjoys the presence of a number of high-profile accounting firms. The [[Big Four accounting firms|Big Four firms]], [[Mazars]], [[Grant Thornton International]], and [[PKF International]] actively operate within the financial system, and are often responsible for the audit of Nairobi Stock Exchange firms.<ref>{{Cite web|url = https://www.businessdailyafrica.com/corporate/companies/Accounting-firms-bag-Sh180m-from-State-contracts/4003102-4899998-19aoa9z/index.html|title = Accounting firms bag Sh180m from State contracts|date = 10 December 2020|access-date = 20 August 2020|archive-date = 28 November 2021|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20211128174843/https://www.businessdailyafrica.com/corporate/companies/Accounting-firms-bag-Sh180m-from-State-contracts/4003102-4899998-19aoa9z/index.html|url-status = live}}</ref>

===Shipbuilding===
Kenya’s first commercial-sized ship to be built from scratch—not only in Kenya but also in the whole of East Africa—was launched in October 2023.<ref name=Tuko>{{cite web |url=https://www.tuko.co.ke/kenya/counties/523979-president-william-ruto-launched-mv-uhuru-ii-ship-constructed-kenya/ |title=MV Uhuru II: William Ruto Launches Kenya's First Locally Built Ship in Kisumu |date=9 October 2023 |publisher=Tuko, October 9, 2023 |access-date=11 October 2023 |archive-date=9 December 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231209153357/https://www.tuko.co.ke/kenya/counties/523979-president-william-ruto-launched-mv-uhuru-ii-ship-constructed-kenya/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name=Face>{{cite web|url= https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/history-made-as-kenya-unveils-its-first-locally-built-ship/ar-AA1i3sXE?ocid=msedgntp&cvid=03c02cf98a584682bad3e378228f1ddb&ei=286 |title=History made as Kenya unveils its first locally built ship|publisher=Face2FaceAfrica, October 11, 2023|accessdate=October 11, 2023}}</ref>  The 1800-ton vessel, the MV Uhuru II, will ferry goods and petroleum across Lake Victoria.<ref name=Tuko/><ref name=Face/>

==Labour==
In 2022, Kenya's labour force was estimated to include about 24 million workers. In recent years, much of Kenya's labour force has moved from the countryside to cities such as Nairobi, as Kenya becomes increasingly urbanised.<ref name=cp/>

The labour force participation rate in Kenya has been constant from 1997 to 2010 for both women and men. In 1997, 65% of women were employed in some type of labour and 76% of men were employed. In 2005, 60% of women and 70% of men were in the labour force, increasing slightly to 61% of women and 72% of men in 2010.<ref name="world bank">{{cite web |title=Labor force participation rate, female (% of female population ages 15+) (modeled ILO estimate) |url=http://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SL.TLF.CACT.FE.ZS?page=2 |access-date=11 June 2015 |archive-date=6 August 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200806135544/https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SL.TLF.CACT.FE.ZS?page=2 |url-status=live }}</ref>

In the past 20 years, many Kenyans have moved away from family farming towards wage labour, small business entrepreneurship, and informal work. In 1989, 4.5 million Kenyans out of a total working population of 7.3M worked on family farms. In 2009, only 6.5M Kenyans out of a total working population of 14.3M worked on family farms. Of these, 3.8M were women and 2.7M were men.<ref name="2012 Kenya Economic Update">[http://siteresources.worldbank.org/INTAFRICA/Resources/257994-1335471959878/kenya-economic-update-december-2012.pdf Kenya Economic Update: Kenya at work: Energizing the economy and creating jobs.] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180219175939/http://siteresources.worldbank.org/INTAFRICA/Resources/257994-1335471959878/kenya-economic-update-december-2012.pdf |date=19 February 2018 }} World Bank. December 2012.</ref>

According to the World Bank 2012 Kenya Economic Update, modern wage jobs include being an "engineer, telecommunication specialist, cut flower worker, teacher, construction worker, housekeepers, professionals, any industrial and manufacturing job, and port and dock workers." In 1989, there were only 1.9M Kenyans employed in wage work. In 2009, this number increased to 5.1M, with 3.4M men and 1.3M women were employed in wage jobs.<ref name="2012 Kenya Economic Update"/>

===Informal economy ("Jua Kali")===
In Kenya, the "Jua Kali" sector is another name for the [[informal economy]], also described as non-farming self-employment.<ref name="2012 Kenya Economic Update" /> Jua Kali is Swahili for "hot sun" and refers to the idea that the workers in the informal economy work under the fierce sun.<ref name=":32">Ronald Hope Sr, Kempe. "Informal economic activity in Kenya: benefits and drawbacks." ''African Geographical Review'' 33.1 (2014): 67-80.</ref> The informal sector consists of legally unrecognised and unregulated self-employment and wage employment. As a result, informal sector employment does not contribute to Kenya's GDP.<ref name=":32" /> Non-farm self-employment has risen from 1989 to 2009.

The World Bank characterises non-farm self-employment to include jobs such as "street vendor, shop owner, dressmaker, assistant, fishmonger, caterer, etc." Non-farm self-employment has risen from a total of 0.9 million workers in 1989 to a total of 2.7 million in 2009. Men make up 1.4 million workers, and women workers number 1.3 million.<ref name="2012 Kenya Economic Update" />

As of 2009, Kenya's informal economy accounts for about 80% of the total employment for the country. Most informal workers are self-employed, with few entrepreneurs employing others. The informal sector contributes economic activity equal to 35% of the total GDP in Kenya, and has its own informal finance structure in the form of [[rotating savings and credit association]]s. This sector provides an income mainly for those in lower socioeconomic groups.<ref name=":32"/>

Drawbacks of the informal economy include the promotion of smuggling and tax evasion and the lack of social and legal protection. Most members of the informal sector have low educational attainment. Rising costs of education and uncertainty about future employment have caused many workers to enter the informal economy, due to lower entry fees as well as shorter and practical training and apprenticeships.<ref name=":2">Barasa, Fred Simiyu, and Eleanor SM Kaabwe. "Fallacies in policy and strategies of skills training for the informal sector: evidence from the jua kali sector in Kenya." ''Journal of education and work'' 14.3 (2001): 329-353.</ref>

===Human capital ===
Kenya has one of the best human capital in Africa. According to the World Bank's 2019 Human Capital Index (HCI), which measured human capital of the next generation, Kenya ranked first in sub-Saharan Africa with an HCI score of 0.52. The index combined several key indicators, such as school enrolment, child survival, quality of learning, healthy growth and adult survival into a single index ranging between 0–1.<ref>{{Cite web |first=Timothy |last=Odinga |date=2020-12-21 |title=Kenya beats sub-Saharan Africa peers in World Bank global human capital index |url=https://www.businessdailyafrica.com/bd/data-hub/kenya-beats-sub-saharan-africa-peers-in-world-bank-global-human-capital-index-2254280 |access-date=2024-04-01 |website=Business Daily |language=en |archive-date=1 April 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240401153950/https://www.businessdailyafrica.com/bd/data-hub/kenya-beats-sub-saharan-africa-peers-in-world-bank-global-human-capital-index-2254280 |url-status=live }}</ref>

==Challenges==
The economy's heavy dependence on rain for its agriculture leaves it vulnerable to periods of high inflation during droughts.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Impacts of protracted drought and high inflation rates drive widespread Emergency (IPC Phase 4) {{!}} FEWS NET |url=https://fews.net/east-africa/kenya/food-security-outlook-update/august-2022 |access-date=2024-03-09 |website=fews.net |language=en |archive-date=9 March 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240309191937/https://fews.net/east-africa/kenya/food-security-outlook-update/august-2022 |url-status=live }}</ref> The agricultural sector employs nearly 33% of the total labour force.<ref>{{Cite web |title=World Bank Open Data |url=https://data.worldbank.org/ |access-date=2024-03-09 |website=World Bank Open Data |archive-date=26 May 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230526025607/https://data.worldbank.org/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

Kenya's economic performance had for a long time been hampered by various factors: heavy dependence on a few agricultural exports vulnerable to global price fluctuations; population growth which has outstripped economic growth; prolonged droughts requiring power rationing; deteriorating infrastructure; and extreme income inequality. Some of these issues have been addressed by policies, with GDP growth increasing, population growth slowing, rapid infrastructural improvements being made and increased electrification rates with more stable power supplies.

Poor [[governance]] and [[Corruption in Kenya|corruption]] also have had a negative impact on growth, making it expensive to do business in Kenya.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Mitchell |first=Travis |date=2016-11-14 |title=3. Kenyans worried about economy and corruption, but optimistic for the future |url=https://www.pewresearch.org/global/2016/11/14/kenyans-worried-about-economy-and-corruption-but-optimistic-for-the-future/ |access-date=2024-03-09 |website=Pew Research Center's Global Attitudes Project |language=en-US |archive-date=9 March 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240309191936/https://www.pewresearch.org/global/2016/11/14/kenyans-worried-about-economy-and-corruption-but-optimistic-for-the-future/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

Despite these challenges, two thirds of Kenyans expect living conditions to improve in the coming decades.<ref>The Economist, March 28th 2020, page 4.</ref>

==See also==
* [[:Category: Companies of Kenya]]
*[[List of counties of Kenya by GDP]]
*[[List of counties of Kenya by poverty rate]]
* [[Eco-Pesa]]
* [[Kenya Vision 2030|Vision 2030]]
* [[Central Bank of Kenya]]
* [[United Nations Economic Commission for Africa]]
*[https://www.kenyatradedata.com/ Kenya Trade Data] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211004073818/https://www.kenyatradedata.com/ |date=4 October 2021 }}
* [[Economy of East Africa]]

==References==
{{reflist|30em}}

==Notes==
{{CIA World Factbook}}

{{OA-attribution|Ellis, Amanda; Cutura, Jozefina; Dione, Nouma; Gillson, Ian; Manuel, Clare; Thongori, Judy. 2007. Gender and Economic Growth in Kenya : Unleashing the Power of Women. Directions in Development; Private Sector Development. Washington, DC}}

==Further reading==
* {{cite book | last = Kitching  | first = Gavin | author-link = Gavin Kitching  | title = Class and Economic Change in Kenya | url = https://archive.org/details/classeconomiccha0002kitc  | url-access = registration  | publisher = Yale University Press  | year = 1980  | isbn = 978-0-300-02385-5 }}

==External links==
{{Commons category}}
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20090601090840/http://www.epckenya.org/cbik/afllogin.asp CBIK – the Center for Business Information in Kenya, a division of the Kenya Export Promotion Council]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20080514014502/http://www.investmentkenya.com/ipcorg.asp KenInvest; the Kenya Investment Authority, formed by the government of Kenya in 2004]
* [http://www.trademap.org/open_access/Index.aspx?proceed=true&reporter=404 Kenya latest trade data on ITC Trade Map] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160101051336/http://www.trademap.org/open_access/Index.aspx?proceed=true&reporter=404 |date=1 January 2016 }}
* [http://www.levyinstitute.org/pubs/CP/May2006_symposium_bios/bio_Kiringai.html Bio Jane Kiringai] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200730222254/http://www.levyinstitute.org/pubs/CP/May2006_symposium_bios/bio_Kiringai.html |date=30 July 2020 }}
* [http://www.worldbank.org/en/about/johannes-zutt About Johannes Zutt] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130105143353/http://www.worldbank.org/en/about/johannes-zutt |date=5 January 2013 }}
; News
* [http://www.businessdailyafrica.com/ Business Daily] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210506073109/http://www.businessdailyafrica.com/ |date=6 May 2021 }}
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20160423040713/http://handtohandinvestmentltd.com/ Sisal export in Kenya]
* [http://www.nation.co.ke/business/ Daily Nation Business] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200805233104/http://www.nation.co.ke/business/ |date=5 August 2020 }}
* [http://www.standardmedia.co.ke/business/ The Standard Business] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200513193020/http://www.standardmedia.co.ke/business/ |date=13 May 2020 }}
;Trade
*[https://wits.worldbank.org/CountryProfile/en/Country/KEN/Year/LTST/TradeFlow/EXPIMP Kenya Export, Import, Trade Balance] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181112223626/https://wits.worldbank.org/CountryProfile/en/Country/KEN/Year/LTST/TradeFlow/EXPIMP |date=12 November 2018 }}
{{Economy of Kenya}}
{{Kenya topics}}
{{Africa topic|Economy of}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kenya}}
[[Category:Economy of Kenya| ]]
[[Category:Economies of developing countries]]
[[Category:World Trade Organization member economies]]
[[Category:African Union member economies]]