
Yesterdays Round-Table Interview with President Uhuru Kenyatta, really shows some PR Stunt out of this world. He thinks he can spin it beautifully on live-broadcast. Where the President can attribute the difference between a thriving economy and his own. Even if the Japanese has higher loan-grade of the GDP, they are exporting much more and have such an advanced economy compared to the Kenyan. This is well-known, but the President tries to flatter himself and ask of the journalist to speak like an economist. Well, that is to different professions, maybe, let economist David Ndii explain, before the PR stunt is shown yet again. Shall we?
David Ndii explaining:
“Kenya’s SGR, Uhuru Kenyatta’s erstwhile legacy project, has turned out to be the bugbear that this columnist among others warned that it would be. Its freight capacity is a third of what was promised, and it cannot be competitive without a hefty public subsidy. Uhuru Kenyatta’s administration has increased Kenya’s foreign debt two and a half fold, from US$9 billion to US$25 billion. The railway alone accounts for a third of this increase; another third is by sovereign bonds for which the country has nothing to show” (David Ndii – ’CHINA’S DEBT IMPERIALISM: The Art of War by Other Means?’ 18.08.2018, link: https://www.theeastafricanreview.info/op-eds/2018/08/18/chinas-debt-imperialism-the-art-of-war-by-other-means/).
“Here is Mr Masai’s conversation with the President:
President Kenyatta: Do you know what the debt of the Japanese government is?
Mr Masai: I’m not really concerned about Japan.
President Kenyatta: Do you know what the Kenyan debt is?
Mr Masai: As I said, right now it’s something between Sh4.5 to Sh4.8 trillion
President Kenyatta: No, no, no as a percentage of the GDP [gross domestic product], talk like an economist.
Mr Masai: 56 per cent of GDP
President Kenyatta: What is Japan’s debt?
Mr Masai: I’m not in Japan so I’m not interested in Japan but Kenya
President Kenyatta: Japan’s debt is over 100 per cent of the GDP” (Evelyn Musabi – ‘Why Mark Masai is trending after Uhuru roundtable interview’ 29.12.2018, link: https://www.nation.co.ke/news/Why-Mark-Masai-is-trending-after-Uhuru-roundtable-interview/1056-4913816-q3k0d/index.html).
As we have seen how a renown economist plays the Kenyan economy and how the President does it. We can really see how this plays out. The President are right about the levels of debt for the government of Japan, but that is domestic. While the growing debt of Kenya is foreign and to other nations. Which is a whole another level… Where the carefulness of paying back should be key for the Jubilee.
Also, the Kenyan is the107th largest export economy, while Japan is the 4th largest export economy. Therefore, the dynamics of the economies are different. Just by the mere recognition of this, should make the President shiver to compel them even. Just like the GDP per Capita is $3.16K in Kenya, while in Japan it is $42.3K. The last measure to prove how wrong it is, the ECON Complexity, the Kenyan is at 89th of 214, while the Japanese is 1st of 214. These numbers are all taken from the Observation of Economic Complexity (OEC). Therefore, they are saying a lot and shows why the President shouldn’t compare these economies and the loans they have. Especially, when you see the significant differences.
Kenya is miles away from Japan. They are not even close. They are so far apart, that the Kenyan better beg the Japanese advice to build their economy and not just borrow to build a railway. Peace.












