On November 29, 2021, the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) will convene its next Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) meeting, a crucial event in the country's economic landscape. The meeting comes at a time when the Kenya Shilling has hit an 11-month low of KSh 111.5471 to the US$.
As the country continues to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic, the CBK has maintained the benchmark Central Bank Rate (CBR) at 7% since April 2020, when it was lowered from 7.25%. This rate has been retained for the past 11 meetings, a testament to the bank's commitment to stabilizing the economy.
With the lifting of pandemic-related lockdown measures, including the removal of travel restrictions and cessation of night curfews, the CBK is expected to respond to the changing economic environment. The MPC's Private Sector Market Perceptions Survey, CEOs Survey, and the Survey of Hotels reveal a general optimism about economic growth prospects for 2021, driven by the easing of COVID-19 containment measures and increased vaccinations.
However, respondents remain concerned about continued uncertainties over the pandemic, the impact of increased taxes on business performance, and the increasingly heated political space as the 2021 polls approach.
