Beautiful Virgin Islands

Wednesday, Aug 27, 2025

China May Seize Kenyan Assets Amid Mounting Debts: Report

China May Seize Kenyan Assets Amid Mounting Debts: Report

Since 2014, Kenya has been taking huge loans from China to fund its infrastructure projects such as roads, clean power generation plants, and its biggest project, the Standard Gauge Railway.

Accumulated Chinese loans pushed Kenya near default and Beijing may seize Kenyan assets if it could not pay its debts.

Since 2014, Kenya has been taking huge loans from China to fund its infrastructure projects such as roads, clean power generation plants, and its biggest project, the Standard Gauge Railway. Kenya's external debt reached $ 36.4 billion in June 2022, according to data from the Central Bank of Kenya, reported Financial Post.

China, which accounted for about one-third of Kenya's 2021-22 external debt service costs, is the nation's biggest foreign creditor after the World Bank.

Kenya spent a total of Ksh 117.7 billion ($ 972.7 million) on Chinese debt in the period, of which about Ksh24.7 billion (USD 204.1 million) is in interest payments and almost $ 93 billion ($ 768.5 million) in redemptions. Kenya's Treasury projects debt repayments to the Exim Bank of China will raise to $ 800 million in the next financial year, a 126.61 per cent surge from the revised $ 351.7 million budgeted for 2022, reported Financial Post.

Notwithstanding China's frequent denial of pushing developing Afro-Asian countries into debt traps, Kenya is the new entrant in the list of defaulting countries.

Moreover, the Chinese banks fined Kenya Ksh1.312 billion ($ 10.8 million) in the year ended June for loan defaults. Kenya defaulted on repayment of the Chinese loans taken to build the standard gauge railway (SGR).

The deal to fund the first phase of the SGR, Kenya's single-largest infrastructure project by cost since independence, saw China overtake Japan as Kenya's largest bilateral lender. But the initial jubilation has turned to instability, reported Financial Post.

The default came in a year when Kenya had asked for an extension of the debt repayment moratorium from bilateral lenders, including China, by another six months.

But the lenders, especially the Exim Bank of China, did not entertain Kenya's application for a debt repayment holiday, causing a standoff that delayed disbursements to projects funded by Chinese loans, reported Financial Post.

Further, due to the economic slowdown caused by the Covid-19 lockdowns and disruptions Kenya faced a deteriorating cash-flow situation, marked by falling revenues, which worsened its repayment capability and accumulated debt service obligations.

The surge in liabilities left Kenya at high risk of debt distress, according to the International Monetary Fund (IMF), reported Financial Post.

The cost of servicing public debt is poised to jump by a third to a record Ksh 1.39 trillion ($ 11.4 billion) in the fiscal year through June 2023, more than half of projected State revenue.

Kenya spent almost 57 per cent of taxable income in the past financial year on repaying loans, according to the Treasury, underlining the effects of the mounting public debt on State finances.

Taxpayers in Kenya have been forced to pay back the huge loans owed to China from their pockets as the revenue currently being generated by the SGR falls short of meeting the annual operational costs and also paying back the loans, reported Financial Post.

While China is a G20 member and a signatory to the debt relief deal it did not extend the debt repayment period despite a desperate request from Kenya.

Rather it continued with the debt repayment schedule, a large proportion of which has been made on a commercial basis by government agencies, quasi-public corporations and by state-owned banks such as China Development Bank and Exim Bank of China.

The terms of China's loan deals with developing countries are unusually secretive and require borrowers to prioritize repayment to Chinese state-owned banks ahead of other creditors.

Newsletter

Related Articles

Beautiful Virgin Islands
0:00
0:00
Close
Manhunt in Australia: Armed Anti-Government Suspect Kills Police Officers Sent to Arrest Him
China Launches World’s Most Powerful Neutrino Detector
How Beijing-Linked Networks Shape Elections in New York City
Ukrainian Refugee Iryna Zarutska Fled War To US, Stabbed To Death
Elon Musk Sues Apple and OpenAI Over Alleged App Store Monopoly
2 Australian Police Shot Dead In Encounter In Rural Victoria State
Vietnam Evacuates Hundreds of Thousands as Typhoon Kajiki Strikes; China’s Sanya Shuts Down
UK Government Delays Decision on China’s Proposed London Embassy Amid Concerns Over Redacted Plans
A 150-Year Tradition to Be Abolished? Uproar Over the Popular Central Park Attraction
A new faith called Robotheism claims artificial intelligence isn’t just smart but actually God itself
Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner Purchases Third Property Amid Housing Tax Reforms Debate
HSBC Switzerland Ends Relationships with Over 1,000 Clients from Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, Qatar, and Egypt
Sharia Law Made Legally Binding in Austria Despite Warnings Over 'Incompatible' Values
Italian Facebook Group Sharing Intimate Images Without Consent Shut Down Amid Police Investigation
Dutch Foreign Minister Resigns Amid Deadlock Over Israel Sanctions
Trump and Allies Send Messages of Support to Ukraine on Independence Day Amid Ongoing Conflict
China Reels as Telegram Chat Group Shares Hidden-Camera Footage of Women and Children
Sam Nicoresti becomes first transgender comedian to win Edinburgh Comedy Award
Builders uncover historic human remains in Lancashire house renovation
Australia Wants to Tax Your Empty Bedrooms
MotoGP Cameraman Narrowly Avoids Pedro Acosta Crash at Hungarian Grand Prix
FBI Investigates John Bolton Over Classified Documents in High-Profile Raids
Report reveals OpenAI pitched national ChatGPT Plus subscription to UK ministers
Labour set to freeze income tax thresholds in long-term 'stealth' tax raid
Coca‑Cola explores sale of Costa coffee chain
Trial hears dog walker was chased and fatally stabbed by trio
Restaurateur resigns from government hospitality council over tax criticism
Spanish City funfair shut after serious ride injury
Suspected arson at Ilford restaurant leaves three in critical condition
Tottenham beat Manchester City to go top of Premier League
Bank holiday heatwave to hit 30°C before remnants of Hurricane Erin arrive
UK to deploy immigration advisers to West Africa to block fake visas
Nurse who raped woman continued working for a year despite police alert
Drought forces closures of England’s canal routes, canceling boat holidays
Sweet tooth scents: food-inspired perfumes surge as weight-loss drugs suppress appetites
Experts warn Britain dangerously reliant on imported food
Family of Notting Hill Carnival murder victim call event unmanageable
Bunkers, Billions and Apocalypse: The Secret Compounds of Zuckerberg and the Tech Giants
Ukraine Declares De Facto War on Hungary and Slovakia with Terror Drone Strikes on Their Gas Lifeline
Animated K-pop Musical ‘KPop Demon Hunters’ Becomes Netflix’s Most-Watched Original Animated Film
New York Appeals Court Voids Nearly $500 Million Civil Fraud Penalty Against Trump While Upholding Fraud Liability
Elon Musk tweeted, “Europe is dying”
Far-Right Activist Convicted of Incitement Changes Gender and Demands: "Send Me to a Women’s Prison" | The Storm in Germany
Hungary Criticizes Ukraine: "Violating Our Sovereignty"
Will this be the first country to return to negative interest rates?
Child-free hotels spark controversy
North Korea is where this 95-year-old wants to die. South Korea won’t let him go. Is this our ally or a human rights enemy?
Hong Kong Launches Regulatory Regime and Trials for HKD-Backed Stablecoins
China rehearses September 3 Victory Day parade as imagery points to ‘loyal wingman’ FH-97 family presence
Trump Called Viktor Orbán: "Why Are You Using the Veto"
×