NAIROBI, Kenya May 1 \u2013 President William Ruto has defended his administration\u2019s controversial economic decisions, saying they are bearing fruit and have positioned Kenya among the leading economies in Africa, according to new data by the International Monetary Fund (IMF).<\/p>\n
Speaking during Labour Day celebrations at Uhuru Gardens, the President said the government\u2019s bold reforms \u2014 though unpopular \u2014 are critical to securing long-term prosperity and economic self-reliance for the country.<\/p>\n
\u201cSome of the decisions we\u2019ve made may not have been popular, but they are necessary,\u201d Ruto said. \u201cAnd today, thanks to those decisions, the IMF has placed Kenya among the top five performing economies on the continent.\u201d<\/p>\n
He said his administration remains committed to taking difficult but necessary steps to build a resilient, productive economy, adding that the 2025 Finance Bill \u2014 approved by Cabinet this week \u2014 is part of that broader transformation plan.<\/p>\n
The Head of State singled out reforms in taxation, pensions, agriculture, housing, and social protection as key pillars of the turnaround. He said measures such as tax exemptions on pensions and direct application of PAYE reliefs will boost workers\u2019 incomes, while simplified tax policies will help small businesses thrive.<\/p>\n
Ruto cited the doubling of national savings through the National Social Security Fund (NSSF), which rose from KSh320 billion saved over 60 years to nearly KSh280 billion in just two years since the implementation of the new 6% savings rate for both employees and employers.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf we stay the course, we will surpass KSh1 trillion in national savings by 2027. That is the foundation of a truly self-reliant economy,\u201d he declared.<\/p>\n
The President also touted his Bottom-Up Economic Transformation Agenda, attributing increased maize production, revived sugar and coffee sectors, and the creation of over 250,000 jobs under the affordable housing programme as signs of progress.<\/p>\n
On health, Ruto said more than 21 million Kenyans have so far registered under the new Social Health Authority, replacing the National Hospital Insurance Fund (NHIF), as part of the push toward universal health coverage.<\/p>\n
He vowed to keep up the momentum, regardless of criticism: \u201cI will continue making these decisions for the good of our nation. It is my duty to leave Kenya better than I found it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Labour Day was marked amid rising public concern over the high cost of living, heavy taxation, and public debt \u2014 issues that have drawn sharp criticism from workers\u2019 unions and civil society groups.<\/p>\n
Would you like a version focused more on the workers\u2019 response to his remarks?<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
NAIROBI, Kenya May 1 \u2013 President William Ruto has defended his administration\u2019s controversial economic decisions, saying they are bearing fruit and have positioned Kenya among the leading economies in Africa, according to new data by the International Monetary Fund (IMF). Speaking during Labour Day celebrations at Uhuru Gardens, the President said the government\u2019s bold reforms […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-114446","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","entry"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack-related-posts":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/114446","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=114446"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/114446\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=114446"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=114446"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=114446"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}