Economy of Kenya

Economy of Kenya
	Nairobi, the financial centre of Kenya
Currency	Kenyan shilling (KES, KSh)
Trade organisations	AU, AfCFTA, EAC, COMESA, CEN-SAD, WTO and others
Country group	Developing/Emerging; Lower-middle income economy;
Statistics
Population	51,526,000 (2023 est.)
GDP	$131.67 billion (nominal, 2025 est.); $401.36 billion (PPP, 2025 est.);
GDP rank	66th (nominal, 2024); 59th (PPP, 2024);
GDP growth	6.3% (2018); 5.6% (2019e); 1.0% (2020e); 4.8% (2025e);
GDP per capita	$2,468 (nominal, 2025 est.); $7,534 (PPP, 2025 est.);
GDP per capita rank	150th (nominal, 2024); 142nd (PPP, 2024);
GDP by sector	Agriculture: 29%; Industry: 18%; Services: 53%; (2021est.);
Inflation (CPI)	7.9% (2022est.)
Population below poverty line	14% ( 2022 est.)
Gini coefficient	38.7 medium (2021)
Human Development Index	0.628 medium (2023) (152nd); 0.438 low IHDI (2022);
Corruption Perceptions Index	31 out of 100 points (2023, 126th rank)
Labour force	21,190,309 (2019); 72.4% employment rate (2016);
Labour force by occupation	Agriculture: 54%; Industry: 8%; Services: 38%; (2020 est.);
Unemployment	2.98% (2020 est.)
Main industries	Consumer goods (plastic, furniture, batteries, textiles, clothing, soap, cigarettes, flour, confectionery), pharmaceuticals, agricultural products, horticulture, oil refining; aluminium, steel, lead; cement, commercial ship repair, tourism, information technology
External
Exports	$13.9 billion (2022 est.)
Export goods	Tea, horticultural products, coffee, petroleum products, fish, cement, apparel
Main export partners	Uganda 14%; Pakistan 8%; United States 8%; Netherlands 8%; United Kingdom 7%; (2020);
Imports	$24.4 billion (2022 est.)
Import goods	Machinery and transportation equipment, oil, petroleum products, motor vehicles, iron and steel, resins and plastics
Main import partners	China 27%; India 11%; United Arab Emirates 7%; Japan 4%; Saudi Arabia 3%; (2020);
FDI stock	$8.738 billion (31 December 2017 est.); Abroad: $1.545 billion (31 December 2017 est.);
Current account	−$5.021 billion (2017 est.)
Gross external debt	$27.59 billion (31 December 2017 est.)
Public finances
Government debt	54.2% of GDP (2017 est.)
Foreign reserves	$7.354 billion (31 December 2017 est.)
Budget balance	−6.7% (of GDP) (2017 est.)
Revenues	21.89 billion (2022 est.)
Expenses	26.93 billion (2022 est.)
Credit rating	Standard & Poor's:; B+ (Domestic); B+ (Foreign); BB- (T&C Assessment); Outlook: Stable; Fitch:; B+; Outlook: Stable;
	All values, unless otherwise stated, are in US dollars.

The economy of Kenya is market-based with a few state enterprises. Kenya has an emerging market and is an averagely industrialised nation ahead of its East African peers. Currently a lower middle income nation, Kenya plans to be a newly industrialised nation by 2030. The major industries driving the Kenyan economy include financial services, agriculture, real estate, manufacturing, logistics, tourism, retail and energy. As of 2020, Kenya had the third largest economy in Sub-Saharan Africa, behind Nigeria and South Africa. Regionally, Kenya has had a stronger and more stable economy compared to its neighboring countries within East Africa. By 2023, the country had become Africa's largest start-up hub by both funds invested and number of projects.

The government of Kenya is generally investment-friendly and has enacted several regulatory reforms to simplify foreign and local investment, including the creation of an export processing zone. An increasingly significant portion of Kenya's foreign financial inflows are remittances by Kenyans in the Diaspora, who work in the United States, the Middle East, Europe and Asia. According to data by the Central Bank of Kenya, remittances from Kenyans living abroad make up over 3.4 percent of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP).

As of September 2018, economic prospects were positive, with above 6% gross domestic product (GDP) growth expected. This growth was attributed largely to expansions in the telecommunications, transport, and construction sectors; a recovery in agriculture; and the rise of small businesses helping to pull the economy. These improvements are supported by a large pool of highly educated professional workers. There is a high level of IT literacy and innovation, especially among young Kenyans.

In 2020, Kenya ranked 56th in the World Bank ease of doing business rating, up from 61st in 2019 (of 190 countries). Compared to its neighbours, Kenya has a well-developed social and physical infrastructure.