Kenya’s Economic Growth Slows in Q3 2024

NAIROBI (Reuters) – Kenya’s economic growth slowed in the third quarter of 2024 compared to the same period the previous year, largely due to underperformance across various sectors, as reported by the statistics office on Tuesday.

The economy grew 4.0% year-on-year, down from 6.0% in the same quarter of the previous year, according to the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics.

“The decelerated growth was largely due to a general decline in growth in most sectors. The growth was constrained by contractions in construction and mining and quarrying activities,” the statistics office stated.

• Construction activities contracted 2.0%.
• Mining and quarrying shrank 11.1%.

Despite these contractions, growth in sectors such as agriculture, forestry and fishing, transportation and storage, financial and insurance activities, real estate, wholesale and retail, and accommodation and food services helped cushion the economy from a further slowdown.

Nationwide protests against proposed tax increases at the end of the second quarter led to disruptions and violence in major towns. President William Ruto subsequently scrapped the tax measures, but demonstrations continued into the third quarter, with protesters demanding better governance, an end to corruption, and improved service delivery.

The World Bank has revised Kenya’s economic growth estimate for 2024 down to 4.7%, from an initial 5.0%, citing the impacts of floods, anti-government protests, and faltering fiscal consolidation efforts. The finance ministry estimates that the economy expanded 5.2% in 2024 and projects growth of 5.4% in 2025. The economy grew 5.6% in 2023.