By Douglas M
Kenyans should prepare for the worst as the effects of Coronavirus pandemic hit the global economy, our sources of foreign exchanges/dollars are dying up. The shilling will be under a lot of pressure in the coming days;
1. Diaspora remittances will fall drastically with key source markets such as USA and Europe in lockdown
2. Tourists – flights grounded in most countries. We have locked out visitors from key markets
3. Exports are not happening – flower farms are throwing away flowers and sending workers home
4. Investors are exiting the stock market and getting dollars out
5. After over-borrowing in the recent past we cannot issue more euro-bonds or syndicated loans
6. Kenyans who work abroad are on lockdown thus low income, they themselves are now struggling
While low oil prices and reduced imports will offer some relief. They wouldn’t be enough to compensate for these reduced dollar inflows. Whereas developed countries like USA, Germany, United Kingdom, Netherlands, Japan, France etc have rolled out substantive financial rescue packages, our Jubilee regime is clueless and cannot even mobilise industrialists to start manuafacturing essentials like masks that are needed in hospitals just incase Coronavirus hits in large scale, we must follow China and USA, we need not re-invent the wheel.
