The African Union has expressed disagreement with Moody’s decision to change Kenya’s outlook from negative to positive. They argue that Moody’s made several mistakes, including skipping a “stable” outlook and using incomplete data.
The AU warns that this could lead to losses, Eurobond sell-offs, and harm Africa’s economy.
Sources within the financial sector support the AU’s concerns, citing Moody’s history of making significant errors in their ratings and their potential to influence global financing decisions.
Others argue that Moody’s decision is justified based on improvements in Kenya’s debt affordability and liquidity conditions.
The African Union, through its African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM), has indeed disputed Moody’s recent decision to revise Kenya’s economic outlook from negative to positive.

APRM argues that Moody’s made an error by directly shifting the country’s outlook from ‘negative’ to ‘positive’ without passing through a ‘stable’ outlook, suggesting that this decision was an attempt to correct a previous misjudgment when Kenya’s outlook was downgraded to negative.
The African Union criticized Moody’s for using what they describe as incomplete data, which they believe could lead to significant financial implications such as losses, Eurobond sell-offs, and negative sentiment towards African economic instruments.
This disagreement highlights broader concerns about the accuracy and impact of global credit rating agencies’ assessments on African economies.