Nairobi, April 15 -- The average time to maturity for issued Treasury bonds fell to seven years and nine months or 7.8 years in January, pointing to elevated refinancing pressures on the government as it is forced to meet higher redemptions in a shortened duration.

The Treasury data shows that the average time to maturity for bonds declined from 8.9 years in the same month last year.

The ramp-up in maturities for the long-dated government debt instruments is largely due to the exchequer favouring issuances with shorter tenors in a high-interest rate environment.

The Treasury has often refrained from selling long-term bonds when rates rise significantly, a strategy that is designed to avoid committing to high debt service costs for year...