Kenya’s key ministries and institutions suffered hacks and digital attacks for years from China, Reuters reports.
According to the report, the hacks were aimed at gaining information on debt owed to Beijing by the East African nation.
Kenya is a strategic link in the Belt and Road Initiative – President Xi Jinping’s plan for a global infrastructure network.
China’s foreign ministry has denied the report, calling it "baseless."
Like several African nations, Kenya’s finances are being strained by the growing cost of servicing external debt – much of it owed to China.
The a three-year hack campaign targeted eight of Kenya’s ministries and government departments, including the presidential office, according to the report.
The Kenyan government claimed the report was "not unique," adding the government had been targeted by "frequent infiltration attempts" from Chinese, American and European hackers.
"As far as we are concerned, none of the attempts were successful," it said.
Kenya used over $9 billion in Chinese loans to fund an aggressive push to build or upgrade railways, ports and highways.
Beijing became the country’s largest bilateral creditor and gained a firm foothold in the most important East African consumer market and a vital logistical hub on Africa’s Indian Ocean coast.
