Economic freedom is the degree to which an economy is in place; by having free competition, and protection

of persons and property rights (Gwartney and Lawson, 2002). It can be measured through Index of Economic
Freedom, which is an annual index and ranking developed The Heritage Foundation, and the Wall Street
Journal to measure the degree of economic freedom of different countries (Index of economic freedom,
2021).

Index of Economic Freedom for Kenya

Kenya is ranked unfree (138th freest in the 2021 Index), with a score of 54.9.

Possible reasons:

1. Our judicial ineffectiveness, which is compromised by other arms of the government

2. Corruption in the government sector

How a country can increase its economic freedom

Economic freedom has intrinsic value and may be a reflection of growth and income distribution, thus, a
country should strive to increase it such as by:

1. Protecting Property Rights: Governments can promote it by providing an efficient, fair, and

independent legal and judicial structure and a law-enforcement system that protect the property
rights of owners and enforce contracts in an evenhanded manner. This system should strengthen
investor protection, property and intellectual property rights, and enhance land administration.

2. Enhancing government integrity- The government eliminating all forms of corruption and
malpractices such as extortion, nepotism, bribery, embezzlement, patronage and graft.

3. Making government regulations effective- The government should control its financial health and
business freedom. It should also avoid enacting too many taxes, capital control, and protectionist
tariffs on international trade so that people can engage in trade more freely with the people and
countries of their choices.

How a Free country can remain in that category

A country can maintain a legal structure and a law-enforcement system that values and protects private
property rights and enforces contracts in an evenhanded way.
References

Index of economic freedom. (2021, April 03). Retrieved from

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Index_of_Economic_Freedom

Word count 299