The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has announced the conclusion of a two-week visit to Kenya.
An IMF staff team led by its mission chief for Kenya, Haimanot Teferra, visited Nairobi from September 25 to October 9, 2025.
The purpose of the visit was to assess Kenya’s current economic situation and initiate discussions on the government’s forward-looking policies and strategies that could be supported through an IMF program.
During the mission, the IMF team held meetings with President William Ruto, National Treasury Cabinet Secretary John Mbadi, Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) Governor Kamau Thugge, and their respective teams.
They also engaged with Members of Parliament, officials from various government agencies, and representatives from civil society organizations, private businesses, the financial sector, and development partners.
IMF hints at new program after staff visit to Kenya ends
In a statement issued on Friday, October 10, the IMF said its team had made progress in reviewing Kenya’s recent macroeconomic and financial sector developments, as well as in assessing the economic outlook.
The mission also held initial discussions with the authorities and stakeholders on a reform agenda that could lead to a new IMF-supported program.
Head of mission Haimanot Teferra noted that the policy priorities discussed included “measures to enhance fiscal policy credibility, ensure sustainability of public finances and debt, and minimize fiscal, financial, and external sector risks.”
Also Read: Senator Tabitha Mutinda Elected to World Bank and IMF Board
Teferra added that the talks also focused on “ways to enhance governance, transparency, and efficiency in the public sector.”
She confirmed that the team would return to Washington, D.C. to continue its technical work and that discussions with the Kenyan authorities would resume during the upcoming IMF Annual Meetings.
“We welcome the Kenyan authorities’ candid engagement and remain steadfast in our commitment to partnering with Kenya to secure a more robust, sustainable, and inclusive economic future for all Kenyans,” Teffera said.
“We thank the authorities and all our partners—representatives of the private sector, civil society, development partners, and other stakeholders in Kenya—for their hospitality, and the constructive discussions and support during the visit.”
Kamau Thugge speaks on new program
The IMF report comes after CBK Governor Kamau Thugge said the government prefers a funded program to support the country’s economic stability and ongoing reforms.
“We expect an IMF mission to start negotiations on a new program. We expect that the program is presented to the board, it will be discussed in conjunction with the Article IV consultation discussions.
“Our preference will be to have a funded program, and that is what we have expressed to the fund,” the CBK Governor said during a Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) briefing.
Also Read: Why IMF Visits Countries and What to Look Out for
Diagnostic visit to Kenya
In June 2025, the IMF’s technical assistance mission led by Rebecca A. Sparkman visited Kenya to conduct a Governance Diagnostic mission.
The intensive review aimed to identify corruption vulnerabilities and weaknesses in public financial management.
According to an official statement, the mission was requested by Kenyan authorities.
The audit focused on high-risk areas, including procurement, tax policy, revenue collection, public spending, mining, market regulation, Central Bank operations, financial oversight, and anti-money laundering systems.
The statement by the IMF follows comments by CS Mbadi, who, while commenting on the IMF mission in Nairobi that concluded on Thursday, acknowledged the value of Kenya’s engagement with the fund.
While speaking to Bloomberg, Mbadi noted that while the institution can sometimes appear to be a “nuisance,” its role in providing external oversight is important.
Follow our WhatsApp Channel and X Account for real-time news updates
