The President of Kenya William Ruto has announced that Kenya has formally joined the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) as a fully paid member.
The deal to join AIIB was signed during the ongoing State Visit to China by President Ruto and other government officials.
The Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank was established in 2016. It is a multilateral development institution with 109 members and a capitalisation of $100 billion.
The institution supports climate change efforts and helps members achieve their environmental and development goals, aligning with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals and the Paris Agreement.
The bank is devising various innovative solutions that will attract private capital in collaboration with other MDBs and partners, including co-financing arrangements
Kenya’s membership in the AIIB will play a crucial role in advancing the country’s development agenda. It will boost Kenya’s access to concessional funding for infrastructure, climate change efforts, connectivity, regional cooperation and technology-enabled projects and programmes.
Kenya’s membership is viewed as a strategic step to diversify the country’s international funding sources, at a time when there are growing concerns about the country’s debt burden.
It will also help Kenya to focus on projects ranging from roads and railways to airports, energy pipelines, ports and telecom networks.
