Kiambu Town MP Jude Njomo. [Photo:|cofek.co.ke]Kiambu Town MP Jude Njomo has expressed worries over Kenya's rising national debt where every Kenyan should pay an estimated Sh100,000 for the government to clear the current debt. Even though he agrees that the government has to borrow to have development projects done, he says it is important to balance between development and external borrowing."We need development but it is also important to control our external borrowing. Also, the country would rather borrow from outside than from local banks or financial institutions. The government borrowing much from local banks at the expense of the public would be straining financial institutions that are not comfortable lending to citizens," Njomo says through an opinion piece published by the Star.Latest data from the Central Bank of Kenya record the government's internal debt at Sh2.22 trillion in November last year while the external debt stood at Sh2.31 trillion in September 2017.He notes that there is no country that does not borrow from outside, even the richest economies because they cannot be able to finance their budgets without borrowing.Njomo says that Kenya being a developing economy which is so much in need, she cannot do all her development without borrowing from outside the country."The government can take any advice from any quarter, including me, regarding its borrowing, but it can decide on its own whether to take the advice or not. Even if the World Bank and International Monetary Fund are international organizations sometimes warn the Kenyan government on borrowing, the final decision rests with the government," he adds.He concludes by saying that the government can either decide to accept or reject the advice as it is the one with the agenda of the country 'at heart'.
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