Governor John Rwangombwa told reporters that the decision was based on uncertainty over the performance of the agriculture sector and that the central bank felt inflation could be kept within its 3%-8% target range.

"We think for now (the rate) is good enough to maintain inflation within our band," he told a news conference.

Annual inflation has remained under 6% this year and stood at 3.8% in October.

Rwangombwa said the East African country's economy had remained strong in the third quarter thanks to the services and industry sectors and that inflation would average around 4.6% in 2024.

The bank has raised its average inflation forecast for next year to 5.8%, from 5%, because of the impact of adverse weather conditions on farming.

--Reuters--