Kenyan national executive to take pay cuts as Covid-19 weighs on economy

CAPE TOWN – Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta has announced an 80 percent salary cut for him and his deputy while other senior government officials will also take reductions on a lower scale to try and ease economic strain on the country.

In a statement, Kenyatta said the pay reductions were in solidarity with millions of Kenyan suffering the anxiety of job losses in the face of the worldwide  Covid-19 pandemic.

“In sharing the burden occasioned by the present global health pandemic, over the duration of the global crisis and commencing immediately, my administration has offered a voluntary reduction in the salaries of the senior ranks of the national executive,” he said.

Chief administrative secretaries will see a 30 percent salary decrease while that for principal secretaries will fall by 20 percent.

Kenyatta said the national treasury would implement an immediate reduction of value-added-tax from 16 percent to 14 percent, effective from April 1.