With the nullification of President Uhuru Kenyatta’s victory, Kenya’s new presidential election may cost the nation about 49.9 billion shillings ($480 million), BusinessAGENDA reliably gathered.
A new vote means that candidates will have to start campaigning again and possibly raise millions of dollars.
Kenya’s Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission will have to hire personnel, procure election materials, conduct another round of voter education exercises, besides collecting and transmitting results
The country’s commission had used almost 43 billion shillings ($413.2 million) for the nullified election which saw the return of President Uhuru Kenyatta.
In Africa, Kenya’s electoral process has been adjudged the most expensive election ever as the August 8 polls attracted by $1 billon in aggregate spendings by the umpire and candidates.
In a pre-election economic and fiscal report before August 2017 election and seen by BusinessAGENDA, Kenya’s national treasury had put the preparation and execution of the election at a cost of 49.9 billion shillings ($480 million) and the largest allotment in the budget went to the electoral commission, which used almost 43 billion shillings ($413.2 million) to hire personnel, procure election materials, conduct voter education exercises, besides collecting and transmitting results.
In a historic ruling and a first in Africa on September 1, 2017, Kenya’s Supreme Court nullified the re-election of President Uhuru Kenyatta ordering a new vote to be held within 60 days after finding that the outcome last month had been tainted by irregularities.
The historic judgment was a result of a petition was filed by opposition candidate Raila Odinga.
This development is coming at a time when the economy is vulnerable to shocks emanating from a biting drought, rising inflation rates, and a slowdown in private sector credit as well as the demand for a salary increase from public servants.
The Supreme Court’s decision also saw Kenya’s stock market tumbled as shares on the Nairobi Securities Exchange fell by around 10 percent, triggering a brief halt to trading, according to Reuters. The country’s currency, the shilling, also fell by 0.4 percent against the dollar following the ruling, while Kenya’s 2024 sovereign dollar bond price fell 1.2 cents.
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