[ti:Ethic Violence in Kenya Raises Concerns Among Investors] [ar:June Simms] [al:Economics Report] [by:www.51voa.com] [00:00.00]This is the VOA Special English Economics Report. [00:05.14]A recent study shows that investors [00:09.10]are concerned about conditions in Kenya. [00:12.55]The nation is preparing for general elections [00:16.12]in March twenty thirteen. [00:18.94]But, the Kenyan business community [00:21.49]is showing less confidence [00:22.95]in the health of the country's economy. [00:26.30]The Kenya Private Sector Alliance [00:30.03]and the Synovate research group reported the findings. [00:34.55]Synovate researchers talked [00:37.32]to one hundred forty-five business leaders [00:40.49]between July and August. [00:43.54]A measure of the leaders' confidence, or trust, [00:47.56]was down fifty-three percent. [00:51.02]That compares to between sixty and seventy percent a year ago. [00:57.49]Patrick Obath is chairman of [01:01.05]the Kenya Private Sector Alliance, or KEPSA. [01:05.31]It represents more than two hundred Kenya-based companies. [01:11.00]Patrick Obath says investors' trust has fallen [01:15.06]because of recent ethnic violence and political problems. [01:20.48]PATRICK OBATH: "We normally do a survey every six months [01:22.98]on the business community to look at the various indicators [01:27.34]that show the way the economy is going [01:31.25]and the kind of fears they have, [01:32.50]so this is a regular thing that we do. [01:34.57]But this particular one showed indications [01:37.13]that there is obviously some pessimism [01:39.19]about the economy as a result of the activities [01:42.20]that normally lead up to the election." [01:43.82]He also says he knows of some investors [01:46.88]are withdrawing their investments. [01:49.64]He says two behaviors could lead to economic problems [01:54.70]before the elections. [01:56.95]PATRICK OBATH: "Two things happen, [01:58.06]one is that if there iss any investment to be done it is delayed [02:02.13]until after the election, once things are clearer. [02:05.09]The second thing that we have experienced [02:06.80]is that also the spending of people changes [02:09.97]because people are also a bit more conscious [02:12.03]and they tend to keep money aside [02:13.81]just in case things don't go the way that they expect. [02:16.76]So that downturn is what we normally see every year before election." [02:20.42]Kenya experienced ethnic violence [02:23.49]after disputed presidential elections in December two thousand seven. [02:30.52]At least one thousand three hundred Kenyans were killed. [02:35.69]More than three hundred thousand others [02:39.40]fled their homes to escape the unrest. [02:43.27]Since then, Kenyans have experienced four years of relative security. [02:50.55]A new constitution is in place. [02:54.36]It is meant to prevent the kinds of anger and political struggles [03:00.43]that caused the violence five years ago. [03:04.54]But Kenya is not completely calm. [03:09.11]Many people have died because of ethnic violence [03:14.18]between competing communities in the Tana Delta area. [03:19.25]Patrick Obath says the violence [03:22.76]has not helped investors' confidence. [03:26.16]He says it also harms his country's image around the world. [03:32.75]And that's the VOA Special English Economics Report. [03:37.78]For transcripts, MP3s and now PDFs of our programs for e-readers, [03:44.60]go to 51voa.com. [03:48.92]You can also find captioned videos [03:52.54]at the VOA Learning English channel on YouTube. [03:57.43]I'm June Simms.