The Retail Trade Association of Kenya (RETRAK) is calling for decisive, coordinated action against illicit trade, urging enforcement agencies to move beyond seizures at retail outlets and dismantle the supply networks behind smuggled, counterfeit and untaxed goods.
RETRAK, whose members include, large and small retailers, is urging the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA), Anti-Counterfeit Authority (ACA), Kenya Bureau of Standards (KEBS) and National Police Service to agree on a joint enforcement plan, identify the lead agency and publish a clear timeline for reporting progress.
“Seizing illicit products from a shop is only the beginning. Investigators must establish who supplied the goods, where they were stored, who transported them and who financed the consignment. Following that trail is how we disrupt the networks and prevent the next delivery,” said RETRAK Chief Executive Officer Wambui Mbarire.
The scale of the challenge is substantial. A recent Kantar study estimates that illicit cigarettes accounted for 45.1% of Kenya’s cigarette market in 2025, up from 34.1% in 2021, with estimated excise duty and VAT losses of KSh 10.2 billion in 2025 and KSh 47 billion over the 2021–2025 period.
Figures presented to Parliament by the ACA indicate that illicit alcohol represents approximately 59% of alcohol consumed in Kenya by volume, with an estimated economic cost of KSh 71 billion in 2022.
