<div id="readability-page-1"><div>By George Obulutsa Kenya's central bank anticipates going into the purchase of gold, its governor said on Wednesday, becoming the latest African country looking to buy the precious metal as a way of diversifying its reserve holdings. Other African nations topping up their reserves with gold include Democratic Republic of Congo, Rwanda and Namibia. &#34;We anticipate going into the purchase of gold as (an) extra buffer. This is something that we have indicated before, it is one of (the) ways of diversifying our holding of reserves,&#34; Governor Kamau Thugge told a news conference. He was speaking a day after the Central Bank of Kenya cut its benchmark lending rate (KECBIR=ECI) by 25 basis points to 8.75%, aiming to further stimulate credit growth. The East African country's foreign exchange reserves stood at $12.46 billion, or 5.4 months of import cover, as of February 9, data from the central bank showed on Wednesday. </div></div>

Kenya's central bank plans to purchase gold to diversify its reserve holdings, joining other African nations like the Democratic Republic of Congo, Rwanda, and Namibia. Governor Kamau Thugge announced this strategy during a news conference, emphasizing gold as an additional buffer. This announcement follows a recent cut in the benchmark lending rate to 8.75% to stimulate credit growth. As of February 9, Kenya's foreign exchange reserves were $12.46 billion, covering 5.4 months of imports.

Reuters

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Kenya to join growing list of African countries buying gold for reserves