During an interview with Al Jazeera aired on Sunday, President William Ruto made several claims regarding the state of Kenya’s economy, agriculture, education, and social health insurance coverage.
We examined key statements using official government data, international financial reports, and verified statistics to determine their accuracy. Below is a breakdown of each claim and the corresponding verdict.
Dr Ruto: I have fixed the economy. Kenya is now listed as the sixth-largest economy in Africa because of the steps I have taken.
President William Ruto addressing at Mumias Sports Complex Stadium in Kakamega County on November 7, 2025.
Photo credit: Isaac Wale | Nation Media Group
Fact-check: According to the International Monetary Fund’s World Economic Outlook of April 2025, Kenya was the sixth-largest economy in Africa with a gross domestic product (GDP) of $136.01 billion. The countries ahead are South Africa ($426.38 billion), Egypt($349.26 billion), Algeria($288.01 billion), Nigeria ($285 billion) and Morocco($179.61 billion).
In 2022, Kenya ranked eighth with a GDP of $114.73 billion.
Fact-check: According to the Morgan Stanley Capital International (MSCI) index, the Nairobi Stock Exchange(NSE) was the top-performing market in Africa with a gain of 65.3 percent, ahead of Côte d'Ivoire (34.9 percent), Mauritius (26.3 percent), Senegal (25.1 percent) and Morocco (16.2 percent).
The NSE also had the third-highest dollar returns in Africa by September 2025, according to analysis by MSCI.
Kenyan investors had a return of 38.4 per cent, behind Morocco and Nigeria’s gains of 50.2 per cent and 39.3 per cent, respectively.
The Nairobi Securities Exchange.
Photo credit: File | Nation Media Group
Dr Ruto: We have fixed agriculture. Today, we have increased the production of maize by 50 per cent from 44 million bags every year to close to 70 million bags last year.
Fact-check: According to the National Agriculture Production Report 2025 by the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics, maize production in 2024 was 44,759,111 bags (90kg bags). The government, through the Ministry of Agriculture, announced in September 2025 that it is projecting to harvest 70 million bags in 2025.
In 2022, the number of bags produced was 34.3 million and increased to 47.6 million in 2023.
Dr Ruto: We have fixed the education system. I have hired 100,000 more teachers, built 23,000 more classrooms and rolled out a new student funding model that has now made all our universities sustainable.
Teachers Service Commission (TSC) headquarters in Upper Hill, Nairobi.
Photo credit: File | Nation Media Group
Fact-check: According to the Teachers Service Commission, 56,000 teachers have been employed on permanent and pensionable terms, while 20,000 have been hired as intern teachers, bringing the total number to 76,000. There are plans by the government to recruit 24,000 teachers by January next year, bringing the total number to 100,000.
On the classrooms built since 2022, it is difficult to verify as there are discrepancies in data.
The university funding model was rolled out in 2023, but a court order suspended its implementation in October 2024. The Court of Appeal, however, allowed the funding model to proceed in March 2025.
Verdict: Misleading. The 24,000 teachers have not joined the teaching workforce yet.
Dr Ruto: We had 8 million people on social health insurance, and today we have 27.2 million.
Health Cabinet Secretary Aden Duale addresses the media at the Ministry of Health headquarters in Nairobi, on April 10, 2025.
Photo credit: File | Nation Media Group
Fact-check: According to the latest figures from the Health Cabinet Secretary Aden Duale in October, the number of Kenyans registered on the Social Health Authority was just slightly over 27 million.
