Written by Duncan Miriri | From Reuters

The World Bank will lend Kenya $4 billion over the next four years, most at below commercial rates, to help finance new infrastructure and other areas of the economy to boost growth and cut poverty.

Thomas O’Brien, the Bank’s country co-ordinator for Kenya, Rwanda and Eritrea, said on Monday the bulk of the funds, about $600-$800 million annually, would be in concessionary loans to the government for transport, energy and other projects.

The rest will be direct lending to firms through its private sector arm, the International Finance Corporation (IFC), and in form of guarantees to foreign investors.

“We are going to be investing … $4 billion over the next several years to help spur economic growth (and) to bring down poverty,” O’Brien told Reuters after the launch of the bank’s Kenya strategy to mid-2018.

The east African nation relies on funding by international development financiers like the World Bank for a portion of its budget. Western nations are also major donors.

Read more at Reuters