Otieno, A. AnneMuthoga, Samuel2024-05-142024-05-142024-02Anne, Otieno A., and Samuel Muthoga. "PUBLIC DEBT AND THE FINANCIAL PERFORMANCE OF COMPANIES LISTED ON THE NAIROBI SECURITIES EXCHANGE." Int. j. of Social Science and Economic Researc2455-8834doi.org/10.46609/IJSSER.2024.v09i02.002https://ir-library.ku.ac.ke/handle/123456789/27867ArticleThe government borrows to fill the budget deficit. The effects of borrowing may be positive, negative, or zero. This study aimed to examine the effect of public debt on the companies listed on the Nairobi Securities Exchange and to ascertain how factors affecting public debt and the financial success of companies listed on the NSE are related. The study used secondary data from the Central Bank of Kenya and the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics. The association between the variables was determined using Ordinary Least Squares. The study found that public debt has a mild negative effect on the financial health of companies listed on the NSE. Limitations of the study included challenges in accessing data and the time taken in data collection is quite long. The recommendations from this study are that government should reduce the dependency on loans, policy makers can develop artificial intelligence tools for data collection, and consider sustainable borrowingenPublic debtgross domestic productNSEfinancial performancePublic debt and the financial performance of companies listed on the Nairobi securities exchangeArticle