Skip to content
Subscriber Only
Markets
Economics

World Bank Sees Kenya Slowdown on Drought, Lending Freeze

  • Kenya seen struggling with fiscal pressures as elections loom
  • No ‘solid rebound’ expected in credit growth to private sector
Camel herders scoop up water in plastic buckets from one of the few watering holes in the area, to water their animals near the drought-affected village of Bandarero, near Moyale town on the Ethiopian border, in northern Kenya on March 3, 2017.

Camel herders scoop up water in plastic buckets from one of the few watering holes in the area, to water their animals near the drought-affected village of Bandarero, near Moyale town on the Ethiopian border, in northern Kenya on March 3, 2017.

Photographer: Ben Curtis/AP Photo
By

Updated on

The World Bank cut its economic growth forecast for Kenya due to a slowdown in the expansion of loans to the private sector and a drought that may hurt output.

Gross domestic product in East Africa’s largest economy will expand 5.5 percent this year, the Washington-based lender said in a report released Wednesday. This compares with an earlier forecast of 6 percent and estimated growth of 5.9 percent in 2016, the World Bank said.