Code Red for Ruto

Kenya's President William Ruto has dismissed almost the entirety of his cabinet in the aftermath of protests against a now-withdrawn finance bill, which resulted in the death of 39 protestors. As a result, Ruto has begun implementing a series of austerity measures to close an almost $2.7 billion budget hole that the withdrawn finance bill sought to fix, including dissolving 47 government offices and reducing the number of government advisers by 50 percent. The protests expanded into wider anti-government and anti-corruption protests in the following days, with the hashtag "Ruto must go" trending in the immediate aftermath..What You Need to Know.Speaking on Thursday in a televised address, President Ruto announced the dismissal of "all the cabinet secretaries and attorney general of the Republic of Kenya," with the dismissals not applying to Musalia Mudavadi, the country's Foreign Minister, or Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua..Campaigning on the ticket to alleviate the condition of the country's working poor, Ruto faced the first real test of his Presidency as security services fired live rounds at protestors as they attempted to storm the Parliament building in Nairobi on June 24th. Several actors, including Amnesty International and the United Nations, released statements on their concern over the incidents of violence in the country, with the increased internal and external pressure prompting Ruto to announce the implementation of austerity measures..The measures aim to reduce government spending totalling $1.39 billion dollars through the suspension of all non-essential travel by public officials, and the removal of budget lines for the spouses of the President and Deputy President. Despite these measures, Ruto announced that the country would still have to borrow approximately $1.31 billion dollars from creditors to plug the budget hole..Additionally, Ruto announced that the country's budget deficit is likely to increase from a projected 3.3 percent to 4.6 percent..In light of the recent cabinet dismissals, Ruto proposed beginning consultations to form a broad-based government after "immediately engaging in extensive consultations across different sectors and political formations and other Kenyans, both in public and private.".The proposed fiscal reforms, backed by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) sought to raise taxes to increase interest payments, of which 37 percent of the nation's annual revenue goes towards, on the country's public debt, which currently constitutes 68 percent of its annual revenue..So, What Now?.The dissolution of the Kenyan cabinet illustrates the power of civil society and African youth in the current political climate. However, in bowing to the wishes of the public and refusing to sign the finance bill into law, the Kenyan economic climate is projected to sink, with Moodys, an economic research corporation downgrading Kenya's sovereign rating further into 'junk' status, with the nation dropping from 'B3' (high risk of debt) to 'Caal1' (very high risk of debt)—meaning, Kenya needs about $26 billion over the next decade to pay off existing foreign debts.