Effects of Exchange Rate Liberalization on French Beans Exports in Kenya (Review Completed - Accepted)
The exports of French beans are one of the leading contributors to foreign exchange earnings in Kenya. Nevertheless, the economic impacts of exchange rate liberalization on French beans exports in Kenya are unclear. The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the magnitude and direction of the effects of exchange rate liberalization on French beans exports from Kenya to its major trading partners in the European Union. Monthly data for a fixed exchange regime represented by the period from 1990- 1993 and a flexible regime represented by the period from 1994-2011 was used in the estimation of an export demand model. The empirical results show that the liberalization of the exchange rate led to an increase in the French beans export volumes from Kenya to the European Union. The paper recommends maintenance of a competitive exchange rate and export promotion in order to boost Kenya’s French beans exports.
Keywords: Exchange Rate, Exports, Liberalization, Time Series