William Ruto Blames Russia-Ukraine War Over Kenya's Rising Cost Of Living

• President William Ruto noted that he took the oath of office when a lot was happening in the global economic sphere
• Ruto said his administration was hit by the rising cost of living in the country, exacerbated by the Russia-Ukraine war and other factors
• He cited the depreciating Kenya shilling against the US dollar, which currently trades at a high of KSh 153.37

TUKO.co.ke journalist Wycliffe Musalia brings over five years of experience in financial, business, and technology reporting, offering deep insights into Kenyan and global economic trends.

President William Ruto has admitted the impact of global dynamics, like the war in Europe, on Kenya's economy.

Ruto said the Russia-Ukraine war, climate change, and the COVID-19 pandemic negatively affected his administration's plans to lower the cost of living.

Ruto explains why cost of living is high

Speaking during a media roundtable on Sunday, December 17, Ruto blamed a mixture of factors, including fluctuations in the exchange rate, that led to increased prices of commodities globally.

"As you know, I came into office when there was a lot of fluid activity in the space. We had a serious situation caused by COVID; we had a big war in Europe, we had a huge drought caused by climate change... all those factors combined to create a situation globally that increased the price of commodities that we import and increased demand for the dollar," said Ruto.

Ruto noted that the US Federal Reserve increased interest rate to an all-time high of 5.25%, from 0.25%, terming it the steepest in history.

Continued depreciation of Kenya shilling

This saw the Kenya shilling lose value against the US dollar to trade at KSh 153.37 per dollar as of December 2023.

According to the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) data, the shilling traded at KSh 122.9 as of December 2022.

Ruto promised to lower the rate to between KSh 115 and KSh 120 after his administration signed a government-to-government oil import deal with Gulf nations.

Ruto assures economy will stabilise

In November 2023, the head of state affirmed that the cost of living has dropped, with unga retailing at between KSh 130 and KSh 140.

The president said the result was realised due to the fertiliser subsidies provided by his Kenya Kwanza administration.

Ruto noted that the country's economy would stabilise gradually as the government continues to enhance food security.