Import commodity data report for Kenya

Photo from Internet

This comes as latest statistics show that China is Kenya's largest source of imports for machinery and transport equipment, accounting for Sh291.8 billion. It's followed by India at Sh161.2 billion, Saudi Arabia (Sh138.4 billion) and UAE (Sh126 billion).

In an interview, the Kenya Association of Manufacturers (KAM) Chief Executive Phyllis Wakiaga said the trend is worrying since Kenya's import bill increased by 20.5 per cent from 2016's Sh1.4 trillion, to Sh1.7 trillion and Sh25.6 billion in 2017.

And the last 10 months of 2018, goods worth Sh997.1 billion came compared to Sh291.8 billion worth of exports, hurting Kenya's quest of finding a home-grown solution that promotes local manufacturing and hence more exports.

KAM noted that while paper manufacturers were struggling to break even, Kenya imported paper and paperboard products such as newsprint, printing papers and packing stuff worth Sh19 billion in the last three quarters of 2018.

"Kenya is experiencing a construction boom that has informed multibillion shilling investments by the six cement companies expanding their facilities as well as new cement firms coming in, but the country still imported cement clinker worth Sh7.3 billion.

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