This archive report was first published on 1 July 2020.
Kenya's economy has been severely impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, with the country's Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth slowing down to 4.9 per cent in the first quarter of 2020, a five-year low.
According to the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (KNBS), the GDP growth slowed down from 5.5 per cent in the first quarter of 2019 to 4.9 per cent in the same period this year.
Although Kenya was partially spared the brunt of the pandemic, the economy was affected by the resultant uncertainty that was already slowing economic activity in some of the country's major trading partners, as stated in the KNBS GDP report published on July 1, 2020.
The agricultural sector, however, recorded a significant growth of 10 per cent, with the output rising from Sh1 trillion in the first three months of 2019 to Sh1.17 trillion in the same period this year.
Favourable rainfall during the October-December season boosted the supply of vegetables, helping keep prices steady compared to a similar period last year.
Other sectors that registered impressive growth include transportation and storage (6.2 per cent), financial and insurance (six per cent), construction (5.3 per cent), ICT (9.8 per cent) and wholesale and retail trade (6.4 per cent).
On the other hand, the horticultural sub-sector saw volumes of exported cut flowers decrease from 49,163 tonnes in the first quarter of 2019 to 42,639 tonnes on the back of travel restrictions from COVID-19.
The tourism and hospitality sectors recorded the largest drop in growth, with the sector contracting by 9.3 per cent in the first three months of the year, compared to a growth of 11 per cent recorded during a similar period last year.
Prices of goods increased at a slower rate in June, following a reduction in the cost of food items and petroleum products, handing slight relief to Kenyans.
