NAIROBI - Kenya plans to change the government's debt ceiling to a proportion of its gross domestic product (GDP) to make debt management more sustainable, President William Ruto's office said on Tuesday.

The East African nation's public debt jumped during an infrastructure construction drive under Ruto's predecessor Uhuru Kenyatta, prompting warnings from ratings agencies.

At present, the East African economy has a debt ceiling set in absolute terms, at 10 trillion Kenyan shillings ($78.83 billion). The new proposal, approved at a cabinet meeting, would set the ceiling at 55% of GDP, Ruto's office said.

"Cabinet approved the transmittal to parliament of the legislative proposals replacing the nominal debt ceiling of 10 trillion shillings with a debt anchor set at 55% of GDP in present value terms," the office said in a statement.

Ruto's government, which took over in September, has pledged to curb expensive commercial borrowing in favour of cheaper sources like the World Bank to reduce debt servicing pressures.

Public debt stood at 60% of GDP at the end of 2022, according to the ministry of finance, which cited a debt sustainability analysis prepared by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank.

The ministry expects the debt level to fall to below 55% of GDP by 2026.

The International Monetary Fund and the World Bank classify Kenya as at a high risk of debt distress, but the finance ministry says its debt load is sustainable.

($1 = 126.8500 Kenyan shillings)

(Reporting by George Obulutsa; Editing by Anait Miridzhanian and William Maclean)