Officials from the National Treasury of Kenya are currently in China to finalise a Ksh358 billion loan. Financial Afrik reports that Kenya is in advanced negotiations with China to raise Ksh358 billion (approximately $2.77 billion) on the Chinese financial markets.
The funds are meant to finance the resumption of the standard gauge railway (SGR) project between Naivasha and Malaba, at the Ugandan border.
The financing would involve the issuance of a Panda Bond, a yuan-denominated bond issued by a foreign country and sold on the Chinese market.
China, already the main financial partner for the first two phases of the SGR (Mombasa-Nairobi and Nairobi-Naivasha), would once again play a key role through this new bond issuance structure.
The Treasury are finalising the technical details of the loan, whose details will be clear in two or three weeks.
“The amount is set at 358 billion shillings. A mission is underway to structure the operation. The principle is agreed upon, even though we are still at the conceptual stage. Within two or three weeks, the financing structure should be clear,” a source close to the matter revealed.
Kenya Grateful for Chinese Support
Kenya’s Prime Cabinet Secretary and Foreign Affairs Minister, Musalia Mudavadi, said the government is counting on Beijing’s support to launch the Panda Bond at the beginning of the next budgetary exercise.
Mudavadi held a meeting with his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi in Beijing 0n June 10, 2025.
He called for fast tracking of the conclusion of the loan agreements and expressed Kenya’s appreciation for Chinese support.
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Mudavadi said the financial discussions between the two countries should be concluded before the end of June.
“During my meeting with H.E. Wang Yi, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the People’s Republic of China, I expressed Kenya’s deep appreciation for China’s continued support, particularly in financial and trade cooperation,” Mudavadi said.
“I also underscored the importance of concluding discussions on financial cooperation before the end of June 2025, as a critical step forward.
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China Last Update on the Financial Agreement
China Special Envoy to the Horn of Africa Amb. Xue Bing said President William Ruto’s visit to China was very successful.
Bing stated that President Ruto and Chinese President Xi Jinping discussed about the financial arrangement.
“I think the two sides’ concerned departments, especially the financial institutions are closely communicating with each other,” Bing said.
“We work for the goal to finally sign agreement, to resolve the wishes from the Kenya side, so that we could achieve a very good result for both sides.”
He was speaking at the sidelines of the Third Annual Seminar on the Outlook on Peace and Development in the Horn of Africa in Nairobi.
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