Publication: Kenya Economic Update, December 2024: Special Focus on Women's Economic Empowerment
Loading...
Published
2024-12-16
ISSN
Date
2024-12-16
Author(s)
Editor(s)
Abstract
Kenya’s macroeconomic environment improved in 2024, following a tighter macroeconomic policy framework. Still, GDP growth is decelerating as Kenya faced a multiplicity of challenges during the year. Broadening economic participation through women’s economic empowerment is essential for easing Kenya’s socioeconomic pressures. The government of Kenya is committed to advancing women’s economic empowerment through a progressive legal and policy framework; however, significant gender gaps in economic outcomes persist. Persistent gender economic gaps in Kenya are driven by a complex interplay of factors across the life cycle. Key areas such as early childhood development, education, age at family formation, sexual and reproductive health, and social norms are central to understanding women’s economic outcomes. Achieving lasting progress in women’s economic empowerment requires a comprehensive, multisectoral approach that addresses the interconnected challenges women face throughout their lives. A successful strategy also relies on timely, high-quality sex-and-gender-disaggregated data, including information on vulnerable populations such as the poor, women in ASALs, and refugees. This data is crucial for developing effective policies and tracking progress toward women’s economic empowerment. Promoting women’s economic empowerment does not mean leaving men behind; correcting economic gender imbalances benefits everyone and contributes to the county's overall development.
Link to Data Set
Citation
“World Bank Group. 2024. Kenya Economic Update, December 2024: Special Focus on Women's Economic Empowerment. © World Bank. http://hdl.handle.net/10986/42541 License: CC BY-NC 3.0 IGO.”
Digital Object Identifier
Associated URLs
Associated content
Other publications in this report series
Journal
Journal Volume
Journal Issue
Collections
Related items
Showing items related by metadata.
Publication Kenya Economic Update, December 2014, No. 11(World Bank, Nairobi, 2014-12)This is the eleventh edition of the Kenya Economic Update. The special focus of this update examines the structural factors underpinning the poor performance of the manufacturing sector. Drawing on recent firm-level data from the 2010 Industrial Census and the 2013 Enterprise Survey. It investigates the extent to which the sector's lack of dynamism reflects problems in Kenya's business environment, which compares poorly to regional neighbors' on several manufacturing-relevant dimensions. The report has four main messages: First, Kenya begins 2015 in a sound economic position. After growing an estimated 5.4 percent in 2014, its economy is poised to be among the fastest growing in the region, with growth projected at 6.0 percent in 2015, 6.6 percent in 2016, and 7.0 percent in 2017. Second, the external sector remains weak and vulnerable, as import growth continue to outpace export growth and short-term flows finance the current account deficit. The large deficit points to underlying structural weaknesses in Kenya's economy, which need to be addressed. Third, Kenya needs to increase the competitiveness of the manufacturing sector so that it can grow, export, and create much-needed jobs. As a share of GDP, Kenya's manufacturing sector has been stagnant in recent years, and it has lost international market share; lastly, the weak business environmentis a key constraint for the manufacturing sector. Obstacles to doing business affect this sector more than many others because manufacturing needs access to capital for investments, infrastructure to import inputs and export and distribute finished products, affordable and reliable electricity to produce, labor to man operations, and fair and streamlined regulations and trade policies that allow firms to compete.Publication Uganda Economic Update, 18th Edition, December 2021(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2021-12)Uganda’s economy was recovering well, up until the second wave of COVID-19 infections and subsequent lockdown in mid-2021. Since then, activity has rebounded – much like after the first lockdown – but the country is likely to still face a stop-start recovery until there is wider coverage of the COVID-19 vaccine. Notwithstanding this recovery, there has been a rise in poverty and – with the shift back to agriculture for some workers – an increase in household vulnerabilities. We have also seen a widening of inequalities, which have been most severe in the education sector, where schools have now been fully or partially closed for longer than any other country in the world. As a result, Uganda has a long way to go in its quest to build-back-better. Eighteenth Uganda Economic Update includes the special topic of Putting Women at the Center of Uganda’s Economic Revival. In line with the structure of earlier editions of the Uganda Economic Update series, this report reviews recent economic developments – with particular attention paid to the effects of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic – provides an outlook for the macro-economy, and then delves into the special topic.Publication Zambia Economic Brief, December 2014, Issue 4 : Financial Services - Reaching Every Zambian(Washington, DC, 2014-12)Zambia s economy is estimated to grow around 6.0 percent in 2014, slower than the 6.7 percent in the previous two years. Growth comes from a bumper maize harvest; rapid expansion in the construction industry supported in part by public investment in roads; and continued strong growth in services. Following the large fiscal deficit of 6.6 percent in 2013, the economy experienced turbulence during the first half of the year when the kwacha depreciated sharply against the U.S. dollar and other currencies, and inflation pressure increased. However, in response to policy actions, the kwacha stabilized subsequently and regained about half of the lost value, and inflation pressure also ebbed. Average inflation in 2014 is expected to be around 7.8 percent, higher than the targeted 6.5 percent and the 2013 average of 7.0 percent.Publication Kenya Economic Update, December 2011(World Bank, Nairobi, 2011-12)Kenya is entering a decisive year. Three main developments will make 2012 extraordinary. First, Kenya will hold national elections for the first time since the traumatic post-election violence of 2007-08, which ended Kenya's high growth momentum abruptly. Second, Kenya's economy will need to navigate through a severe economic storm, which could well become a hurricane, especially if Europe enters into a recession. Third, the country will implement its most ambitious governance reforms ever, namely the devolution of responsibility to forty-seven new counties. Kenya's policy makers will need to display tremendous skill and steadfast leadership in order to balance the need for fiscal prudence, with ensuring that resource flows to new local governments are sufficient to meet their needs. High expectations of the promise of devolution need to be met by equally high quality planning and execution of its delivery. Kenya will enter 2012 from a weaker-than expected economic position. Kenya's economy is navigating rough economic waters, where existing structural weaknesses have been compounded by short-term shocks. The most visible sign of Kenya's economic challenge is the depreciating shilling, which reached an all time low against the US Dollar in October 2011. The elements behind this situation are high international food and fuel prices, the drought compounded by conflict in the horn of Africa, the Euro crisis, widening fiscal and current account deficits, and major inefficiencies in Kenya's agriculture sector. The recent developments are also undermining one of Kenya's main strengths over the last decade: the credibility and predictability of its macroeconomic policies.Publication Gender and Economic Growth in Kenya : Unleashing the Power of Women(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2007)This report examines the legal, administrative, and regulatory barriers that are preventing women in Kenya from contributing fully to the Kenyan economy. Building on the 2004 Foreign Investment and Advisory Service (FIAS) report, "Improving the Commercial Legal Framework and Removing Administrative and Regulatory Barriers to Investment," this study looks at the bureaucratic barriers facing women in Kenya through a gender lens. The report makes specific recommendations to address gender-related barriers in the context of ongoing government and donor initiatives to encourage private sector development as the key driver of poverty reduction and economic growth, in line with Kenya's Economic Recovery Strategy for Wealth and Employment Creation 2003-2007 (ERS). Addressing these constraints will not only allow women to make a full contribution to the economy but also improve their livelihoods and those of their families and help create a more enabling environment for all businesses in Kenya.
Users also downloaded
Showing related downloaded files
Publication Kenya Country Climate and Development Report(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2023-11-16)The Kenya Country Climate and Development Report (CCDR) aims to identify the impact of climate change on Kenya’s economy. Through robust and rigorous analyses that cover climate impact modeling across multiple scenarios and the overall economy, sectoral issues, investment needs and potential sources of financing, the CCDR aims to identify high impact intervention areas that would support climate positive development. Action against climate change is imperative to avoid setting back Kenya’s aspiration of being an upper-middle-income country and reducing poverty in the next decade. In a business-as-usual scenario, inaction under different climate futures could dampen real GDP by 1.25 to 2.4 percent by 2030 and 3.61 to 7.25 percent by 2050 compared to the baseline. Climate impacts Kenya’s human, natural and physical capital and the impacts vary by region. By 2050, no climate action could also result in 1.1 million additional poor compared to the baseline under the pessimistic climate scenario, with communities in the arid and semi-arid areas being most hard-hit. Kenya can also be a key player in the global climate solutions arena if it maintains a low-carbon growth path. Kenya stands out among African and lower-middle-income countries due to its well-diversified and primarily low-carbon energy mix, with about 90 percent of electricity generation coming from renewable resources. Kenya could also generate carbon offsets through large-scale landscape restoration. The CCDR identifies five key action areas that could enable Kenya to meet its growth aspirations in an inclusive and climate-resilient manner. The three multisectoral action areas are: managing water, land, and forest for climate-resilient agriculture and rural economies; delivering people-centered resilience with climate-informed basic services and urbanization; and strengthening Kenya’s competitiveness in international markets through shifts in energy, transport, and digital systems. It is necessary to complement these the three action areas with two crosscutting actions areas - improving integration and coordination of climate action in policy, planning, and investment decision-making across the economy, and developing and operationalizing policy measures for mobilizing climate finance from private and public sector. Implementing these action areas should account for regional differences to climate risk exposure.Publication Digital Africa(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2023-03-13)All African countries need better and more jobs for their growing populations. "Digital Africa: Technological Transformation for Jobs" shows that broader use of productivity-enhancing, digital technologies by enterprises and households is imperative to generate such jobs, including for lower-skilled people. At the same time, it can support not only countries’ short-term objective of postpandemic economic recovery but also their vision of economic transformation with more inclusive growth. These outcomes are not automatic, however. Mobile internet availability has increased throughout the continent in recent years, but Africa’s uptake gap is the highest in the world. Areas with at least 3G mobile internet service now cover 84 percent of Africa’s population, but only 22 percent uses such services. And the average African business lags in the use of smartphones and computers as well as more sophisticated digital technologies that catalyze further productivity gains. Two issues explain the usage gap: affordability of these new technologies and willingness to use them. For the 40 percent of Africans below the extreme poverty line, mobile data plans alone would cost one-third of their incomes—in addition to the price of access devices, apps, and electricity. Data plans for small- and medium-size businesses are also more expensive than in other regions. Moreover, shortcomings in the quality of internet services—and in the supply of attractive, skills-appropriate apps that promote entrepreneurship and raise earnings—dampen people’s willingness to use them. For those countries already using these technologies, the development payoffs are significant. New empirical studies for this report add to the rapidly growing evidence that mobile internet availability directly raises enterprise productivity, increases jobs, and reduces poverty throughout Africa. To realize these and other benefits more widely, Africa’s countries must implement complementary and mutually reinforcing policies to strengthen both consumers’ ability to pay and willingness to use digital technologies. These interventions must prioritize productive use to generate large numbers of inclusive jobs in a region poised to benefit from a massive, youthful workforce—one projected to become the world’s largest by the end of this century.Publication Kenya Economic Update, May 2025(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2025-07-02)The global economic context improved modestly in 2024, supported by easing inflation and a rebound in global trade. Kenya’s economy has slowed despite several improving macroeconomic indicators. The external sector showed improvement, driven by recovering exports and rising financial inflows. A tighter monetary policy and moderation in global inflation have contributed to a decline in inflation. Kenya’s fiscal policy challenges are multifaceted and have significant implications for the country’s economic stability and growth. Increased domestic borrowing is crowding out private sector lending. Kenya’s real gross domestic product (GDP) is expected to pick up gradually in the medium term with the external sector also projected to remain stable in the medium term. The economic outlook faces several downside risks, including fiscal challenges, weather, and external shocks. In the context of narrowing fiscal space, growing demand for investment in essential services, and the limited inclusivity of economic growth, there is an urgent need for a more efficient and equitable fiscal policy. Expanding the coverage and adequacy of cash transfers is essential to strengthening the poverty and inequality-reducing impact of Kenya’s fiscal policy.Publication Classroom Assessment to Support Foundational Literacy(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2025-03-21)This document focuses primarily on how classroom assessment activities can measure students’ literacy skills as they progress along a learning trajectory towards reading fluently and with comprehension by the end of primary school grades. The document addresses considerations regarding the design and implementation of early grade reading classroom assessment, provides examples of assessment activities from a variety of countries and contexts, and discusses the importance of incorporating classroom assessment practices into teacher training and professional development opportunities for teachers. The structure of the document is as follows. The first section presents definitions and addresses basic questions on classroom assessment. Section 2 covers the intersection between assessment and early grade reading by discussing how learning assessment can measure early grade reading skills following the reading learning trajectory. Section 3 compares some of the most common early grade literacy assessment tools with respect to the early grade reading skills and developmental phases. Section 4 of the document addresses teacher training considerations in developing, scoring, and using early grade reading assessment. Additional issues in assessing reading skills in the classroom and using assessment results to improve teaching and learning are reviewed in section 5. Throughout the document, country cases are presented to demonstrate how assessment activities can be implemented in the classroom in different contexts.Publication Kenya Country Economic Memorandum(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2023-07-31)Kenya’s economy has been growing solidly but maintaining and increasing growth will depend on increasing private investment and productivity. Between 2010 and 2019, Kenya maintained a steady annual growth rate of 5 percent and the economy was able to rebound relatively rapidly from the COVID-19 pandemic. However, productivity growth did not make much of a contribution to output growth, and growth has been lower than that of some other, fast-growing middle-income countries. This points to the potential for Kenya to increase growth via productivity gains, by expanding the role of the private sector and, especially, accelerating private investment. Doing this has become more urgent as the Government's fiscal space to invest has shrunk, making it crucial also for the sustainability of growth to identify new opportunities for the private sector to contribute. This Country Economic Memorandum (CEM) focuses on the question of how seizing opportunities in Kenya’s services sector can contribute more effectively to long-term economic growth. This report argues that growing the services sector should not be seen as an alternative to industrialization, but rather as an enabler of economy-wide growth, including in manufacturing, and in agriculture too. It focuses on five channels through which services contribute to jobs, economic transformation and inclusion: (i) the need to SHIFT the services sector to higher value-added activities; (ii) how to LINK services better to other economic activities to grow its enabling role; (iii) how to BOOST the productivity of the sector through technology and increasing competition; (iv) how to TRADE more services through removing regulatory barriers to trade and investment; and finally (v) how to SECURE people’s economic livelihoods better, especially those working in lower-skilled and economically more vulnerable services subsectors. Growing the contribution of services will require a program of structural reforms and complementary efforts.