Kenya : Second Reviews Under the Stand-by Arrangement and the Arrangement Under the Standby Credit Facility, and Requests for a New Twenty-Four Month Stand-By Arrangement, and a New Twenty-Four Month Arrangement Under the Standby Credit Facility-Press Rel

Precautionary arrangements: The Executive Board approved on February 2, 2015 a Stand-By Arrangement (SBA) and an arrangement under the Standby Credit Facility (SCF), originally for 12 months, with combined access of SDR 488.52 million (90 percent of quota)1. The first reviews, focusing on the policy response to external shocks, were completed on September 16, 2015. On January 26, 2016, these arrangements were extended until March 15, 2016 to provide more time for implementing structural and fiscal measures. The authorities have treated both arrangements as precautionary. Performance under the current program. Although Kenya's macroeconomic performance remains robust, external shocks complicated achievement of some program's macroeconomic objectives. All end-September and continuous performance criteria (PCs) were met. Performance under the structural benchmarks was mixed.