Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua has warned financial investors hoarding dollars to release them or prepare for losses.
Gachagua said President William Ruto’s efforts to de-dollarize the economy were gaining traction and that these interventions would result in a significant reduction of exchange rates.
The second in command made these remarks at Mombasa on Thursday, April 13 when he formally received two oil tankers from the gulf.
He further cautioned that the dollar may not be marketable soon as the government has devised ways to reduce its demand.
“We ask all those Kenyans, businesspeople, investors, who have been hoarding US dollars for the purpose of speculation, please offload those dollars to the market today and. It is very honest advice from a truthful man,” he said.
“With what has happened freeing USD500 million to purchase fuel every month, the demand for the dollar will come down and shilling will gain, and we do not want Kenyans to lose their money. So those who have been hoarding dollars everywhere hoping that it will go up, it will go down,” Gachagua added.
Nonetheless, a dollar shortage has hit local commercial transactions regardless of having eased in recent weeks.
As such, commercial banks have increased their rate to as high as Sh145.5 per unit as of Thursday, April 13 evening, in a move that has led to the increase in in black-market deals.
Furthermore, President William Ruto on March 22, disclosed his administration’s plan to fix the dollar shortage promising a return to normalcy in a matter of weeks.
He also noted that the Kenya Kwanza administration had implemented creative measures to lessen the impact of the market’s dollar availability.
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In addition, the head of state mentioned a fuel supply deal with oil producers in from the United Arab Emirates in a Government-to-Government that will see Kenya secure supply on a six-month credit basis as local oil markers pay for their stock in shillings.
This according to him will ease the surge in demand.
“I want to assure those in Kenya who were facing challenges of access to dollars that we have taken steps to ensure dollar availability in the next couple of weeks are going to be different because our fuel companies will now be paying for fuel in Kenya shillings,” Ruto said.
