Kenya on Friday put up for sale a 25-year Treasury bond worth 50 billion shillings (about 500 million U.S. dollars) as the country seeks to raise money for infrastructure projects.

The paper, whose yield is set at 12.2 percent, will be sold until March 20 and the secondary trading commences at the Nairobi Securities Exchange on March 26, the Central Bank of Kenya said on Friday.

It added the yield on the paper would be tax free as the government seeks to encourage uptake of the paper.

The Treasury bond is floated at a time when there is high demand for the long-term government securities, with the last offer in February worth the same value attracting a subscription of 156 percent.

Kenya plans to borrow some 2.7 billion dollars from the domestic market this fiscal year to meet a budget deficit arising from depressed revenue collection, according to the central bank.