This archive report was first published on 30 June 2019.
Plastic Bags Ban: Black Market Thrives in Kenya ¶
Published on June 30, 2019, a Sunday Standard investigation has found that tonnes of banned polythene bags are being smuggled into Kenya, fueling a thriving black market.
Kenya banned plastic bags on August 28, 2017, attaching hefty fines for those found in possession. However, the ban has done little to deter smuggling of plastic bags, with weak enforcement and porous borders allowing the contraband to flow in from neighboring countries such as Uganda, Tanzania, Ethiopia, and Somalia.
Street vendors and kiosk owners, who were left without an affordable alternative when the Ministry of Environment banned the use, importation, and manufacture of plastic carrier bags in 2017, are the axis of the illegal trade. Without a viable or cost-friendly alternative, small-scale traders are being forced to risk the fines and jail terms to keep clients, some of whom insist on the packaging.
Anyone, including consumers, flouting the ban will face between one and two year jail terms or a fine of between Sh2 million and Sh4 million. However, in low-income neighborhoods in Nairobi and in rural areas, the proliferation of plastic bags continues, with traders developing a sixth sense to help them avoid arrest.
Border towns such as Busia, Malaba, Suam, Moyale, Namanga, Loitokitok, and Mandera are the key entry points for the contraband. Unlike in Rwanda, which imposed a ban on plastics 11 years ago, where all luggage into the country is checked, smuggling plastics into Kenya is as simple as walking across the border.
Nema blames the porous borders for the smuggling, but traders have found ways to evade detection. They buy the bags from smugglers and conceal them in a gunny bag inside their stall, from where they retrieve a piece whenever a customer needs it. For 100 pieces of the transparent plastic bags measuring 7cm by 12cm, they pay Sh100.
As the black market thrives, the environment continues to suffer. The plastic bags are a menace, albeit less pervasive than before, and the ban has done little to change the situation. The traders' survival depends on their ability to provide the plastic bags, and they will continue to risk the fines and jail terms to keep their clients.
