President William Ruto has attributed the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, geopolitics and prolonged drought to the shambling economy of the country. https://bit.ly/3Qt2oyF
Category
🗞
NewsTranscript
00:00 In our plan, we identified three primary challenges,
00:05 external shocks, fiscal distress,
00:08 and structural imbalance that heavily strained our economy,
00:13 causing nationwide difficulty.
00:17 The COVID-19 pandemic,
00:18 coupled with global supply chain disruptions
00:21 and geopolitical conflicts,
00:23 significantly raised inflation and interest rates,
00:27 adversely affecting our economy,
00:30 while low agricultural investment and a prolonged drought
00:35 led to food shortages and made Kenya a net importer of food
00:40 in a volatile international market.
00:43 It was under conditions of such extreme difficulty
00:49 that the people of Kenya entrusted us
00:53 with the responsibility of simultaneously
00:55 generating effective solutions to immediate problems,
01:00 providing a credible pathway to stability in the medium term
01:04 and undertaking long-term structural transformation
01:08 of our economy,
01:09 but in a manner which paid attention to the needs
01:13 and aspirations of Kenyans,
01:14 especially those at the bottom of the pyramid.
01:17 The transformation of our economy
01:21 is not only desirable and important,
01:24 it is also necessary and urgent,
01:27 and the people of Kenya have made this clear
01:31 at every opportunity.
01:33 Our duty as leaders is to listen keenly
01:38 and comply with the people's wishes.
01:41 Kenyans want to proceed in a new direction
01:45 and demand a new conversation
01:48 that puts ordinary Kenyans,
01:52 the Mambamboga security, wellbeing,
01:54 interests and aspirations at the front and center
01:58 of all policy and governance discourse.
02:01 Thank you.
02:02 (music)
02:07 [BLANK_AUDIO]