July 9, 2024
Kenya’s protests: The violent cost of IMF debt
Recent demonstrations against Kenya’s Finance Bill 2024 were met with deadly repression. At least 39 civilians were killed and hundreds injured by Kenyan police while protesting the proposed 346 billion Kenyan shillings ($2.6 billion) tax increase. This Bill was intended to generate government revenue, a condition of the $2.34 billion International Monetary Fund (IMF) 38-month loan issued to Kenya in April 2021. The proposed tax levies would have increased the price of basic commodities including bread, sugar, and car petroleum, thereby disproportionately impacting poor and working class communities. Kenyan President William Ruto withdrew Finance Bill 2024 following the violent protests, announcing that this change will result in new austerity measures and budget cuts.
IMF austerity measures often push a neoliberal agenda in low- and middle-income countries through requiring tax increases and subsidy cuts that ultimately result in increased privatization. Critical funding from national health- or -food-related programs is often diminished to satisfy these loan stipulations. This has damaging impacts on national life expectancy and infant mortality rates. The Kenya National Bureau of Statistics Economic Survey 2024 report indicates that the nation used nearly 40% of export revenues to service international debt. As U.S. Congresswoman and Somali-American Ihan Omar recently expressed, “It’s also crucial to recognize that the International Monetary Fund’s austerity conditions have contributed to the economic hardships facing Kenyan citizens. These measures often disproportionately affect the most vulnerable populations and can exacerbate social unrest”. Although government corruption and financial mismanagement play a role in Kenya’s current debt crisis, stringent IMF loans perpetuate a cycle of debt which disproportionately affects the poorest communities.
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Image source: allAfrica
