NAIROBI, Nov. 25 (Xinhua) — The World Bank on Monday lifted Kenya’s 2025 economic growth projection to 4.9 percent, an upward revision from 4.5 percent in May, citing the faster-than-expected recovery in the construction sector.
In its Kenya Economic Update report released in Nairobi, the capital of Kenya, the global lender said that low inflation, easing monetary policy, and improved credit growth, partially due to accommodative monetary conditions, are expected to support household incomes and private investment.
“Inflation remains within the central bank’s target range, exchange rate has remained stable, and international reserves are at a record high,” the World Bank said in the update, which is published twice a year to assess recent economic and social developments and prospects in Kenya.
According to the bank, projected medium-term growth is expected to support increases in real per capita income, but the pace of poverty alleviation will remain low unless growth leads to higher incomes and better jobs, especially for the poor.
The lender noted that gross domestic product per capita is projected to grow by 2.5 percent in 2025 and 3.0 percent in 2026-2027, while the international poverty rate is projected to decline by half a percentage point to 43.2 percent in 2026.
Qimiao Fan, World Bank country director for Kenya, Rwanda, Somalia, and Uganda, said the combination of macro stability and fiscal and structural pressures places Kenya at a pivotal moment.
“The choices made now will influence not only the trajectory of growth, but also its quality: whether it generates good and better jobs, supports rising incomes, and creates opportunities across sectors and regions,” he added.
