Kenya will waive its fuel quality rules, the government announced on Thursday, in an emergency measure to keep supplies running amid shortages caused by the Middle East war.

The East African country is heavily reliant on fuel imports from the Gulf and has been one of the most affected by the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz.

A request from the energy ministry and petrol suppliers "to temporarily waive the sulphur parameter to the maximum limit of 50mg/kg... for a period of six months" was approved by the ministry of investments, trade and industry, it said in a statement.

The measure is "intended to ensure continued fuel availability and sustain economic stability during the current period of global supply disruption," it added.

On Thursday, UN chief Antonio Guterres warned that the closure of the Strait of Hormuz was "strangling the global economy" and supply chains would take "months to recover."