The changes will remove the dollar-denominated interest (which fluctuates) on three loans provided by China’s Exim Bank, aligning the repayments with a lower yuan-based interest rate. This is expected to save the country approximately $215 million annually, Mbadi told reporters.

The East African nation took out these three loans, totaling $5 billion, in 2014 and 2015 to build a modern railway connecting the port city of Mombasa to a location near Naivasha in the Rift Valley region.

According to the Ministry of Finance, the remaining debt as of June last year was around $3.5 billion. China has not commented on the change in currency usage.

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In addition to lowering interest pressure, Kenyan officials say the move was prompted by the fact that much of Kenya’s debt is denominated in dollars, increasing exposure to currency and interest rate fluctuations. Officials note that about 68% of Kenya’s external debt is dollar-denominated.

The William Ruto administration has long sought to reduce total debt, which is now approaching 70% of the country’s gross domestic product (GDP), to make repayment more manageable.

Kenya is also raising funds through revenue securitization to finance major projects, including extending the railway from Naivasha to the Ugandan border and upgrading Nairobi’s airport.