Woe unto you if you are thinking of investing in Kenya

Kenya’s economy is bleeding, everything seems to be falling apart but the men in power want Kenyans to believe that ‘all is well,’ and that the economy is ‘on the right track.’

Riaz Gilani, an entrepreneur, took to Twitter with a series of facts about Kenya’s economy that will leave you shaking to the core with no hope of seeing the future.

Kenya can clearly be described as tattered infrastructure, potholes, mad traffic jams, erratic water supply, ambiguous road signage and garbage littered in almost every street of every town.

Despite various researchers predicting that the economy of the country is likely to grow at an average of 5.6 percent, the reality on the ground has left more questions than answers with people wondering what the researchers are basing on to predict the economic growth.

Foreign investors are increasingly keeping off the country as the cost of doing business continues to skyrocket.

Need to launch a new product? Is Kenya your only option? You are in for a long wait. Upon submitting your request, you will be subjected to an uncertain and torturous waiting for months for the standards authority to certify your products.

Red tape. Need to launch a product? You will wait months for the standards authority to certify your products. That is IF they have a documented standard for the product you intend to launch.

— Riaz Gilani (@RiazGilani) February 15, 2018

The ban on the use of plastic bags just made matters worse for investors wishing to invest in the country. Plastic bags were widely used as primary packaging. Investors whose industrial packaging is made of plastic are subjected to weeks and months of waiting from relevant authorities.

Woe unto you if you use primary industrial packaging made out of plastic. You will have to apply for permission to use plastic packaging material. You will wait for weeks or even months for this approval.

— Riaz Gilani (@RiazGilani) February 15, 2018

As the end user of the primary packaging material, prepare to have these packets brought back to you for recycling. You WILL be held liable for any packaging material found littered, discarded, or dumped. It will be your job to police your customers to avoid a fine.

— Riaz Gilani (@RiazGilani) February 15, 2018

If you use imported inputs be prepared for delays at the port. Also allow for sudden changes in import tariffs. Don’t even get me started on sudden surprise changes in fuel and electricity costs. These will be Gazetted to give them an air of legitimacy.

— Riaz Gilani (@RiazGilani) February 15, 2018

The economy is ailing. The debt is ballooning and investors are folding up. Medium Term Debt Management Strategy tabled in the August House indicate debt repayments for Kenya will hit one trillion shillings in 2018/19 financial year. This will be 54.4 percent of 1.85 trillion shillings in expected total revenue in the financial year period; propelled by a significant refinancing risk.

Planning to build a mall or shopping centre? Come and see the actual rate of uptake of retail space. Shiny and nice malls where the public will come to take selfies but not buy anything. Truly sustainable. Come see for yourself.

— Riaz Gilani (@RiazGilani) February 15, 2018

Planning to invest in land, construction of property etc? Land values are starting to stabilize. Many analysts predict that the bubble will burst soon. Come see the To Let signs and empty apartment buildings.

— Riaz Gilani (@RiazGilani) February 15, 2018