The Chairperson of President William Ruto’s Council of Economic Advisors (CEA), David Ndii, has explained how the shilling has remained at 129 against the dollar since September 2024.
While responding to an X user, Ndii shared a chart showing how increased foreign exchange reserves have maintained the stability of the Kenyan Shilling.
As per the trend shared by David Ndii, there was a sharp increase in Kenya’s forex reserves compared to previous years, especially from late 2023.
As of April 8, 2025, the shilling was exchanging at 129.5635 against the dollar compared to the exchange rate of 157.44 on January 1, 2024.
Since July 30, 2024, the shilling stabilized at 129.83.
2024 Foreign Reserves Used by David Ndii
CBK latest weekly report showed that the usable foreign exchange reserves remained adequate at USD 9,936 million (5.1 months of import cover) as of April 3.
This meets CBK’s statutory requirement to maintain at least 4 months of import cover.
The Shilling exchanged at Ksh129.31 per US dollar on January 2, 2025, compared to Ksh129.30 per US dollar on December 24, 2024.
The usable foreign exchange reserves also remained adequate at USD 9,198 million (4.7 months of import cover) during this period.
January 2024 started at a relatively low point, with reserves slightly above $6.7 billion.
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However, there was an increase in February, pushing reserves to around $7.1 billion.
On February 12, Kenya tapped into the international bond market to raise cash and buy back a 10-year Eurobond of USD 2 billion that matures in June this year.
This not only eased debt pressures but also helped stabilize reserves.
The reserves stabilized at above $7 billion throughout March, April and May.
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Highest Points in 2024
June and July 2024 marked the highest points of the year, with the reserves hitting approximately $8 billion.
By October, the reserves surged to around $9.3 billion after the International Monetary Fund (IMF) approved a disbursement of kSh78.3 billion ($606.1 million) to Kenya.
This provided 4.8 import cover, which was a three-year peak.
The reserves remained stable, stabilizing at around $9.3 billion in November and $9.4 billion in December 2024.
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