This archive report was first published on 21 May 2020.
Published on May 21, 2020, a study by the World Bank and other institutions has shed light on how Kenya's ruling elite have been siphoning off billions of shillings in World Bank aid over the past two decades.
The study, titled 'Elite Capture of Foreign Aid: Evidence from Offshore Bank Accounts,' found that between 1990 and 2010, Kenya's elite carted away Sh328 billion of World Bank aid payments to offshore accounts.
According to the study, Jordan topped the list globally with over Sh350 billion of aid siphoned, followed closely by Kenya. Ivory Coast was third at Sh128 billion, while the Democratic Republic of Congo was fourth with Sh110 billion of aid money stolen.
The money was deposited in tax havens such as Switzerland, Luxembourg, the Cayman Islands, and Singapore, whose legal frameworks emphasize secrecy and asset protection.
World Bank Country Director for Kenya Felipe Jaramillo said the report was an independent study conducted by researchers from the lender and other institutions, but he had raised some issues with the methodology of the report.
Kenya has been fighting to recover some of the money stashed in tax havens, including an agreement signed in 2018 with the then President of Switzerland Alain Berset to help recover assets stashed in Swiss banks.
Meanwhile, the European Union has added Mauritius, Panama, and nine other countries to its list of countries that pose a financial risk to the bloc because they are linked to money laundering and terrorism financing.
