Informal cross border trade falls 16% to Ksh 249M

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The volume of informal trade between Kenya and its regional neighbours reversed from an earlier surplus to decline to Ksh 249 million in a year to December 2025 on lower agricultural production which hurt market activity.

Latest data by the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (KNBS) indicate that year-on-year trade volume dropped from Ksh 299 million reported in 2024 along thirteen border crossing points Kenya shares with Uganda, Tanzania, Ethiopia and Somalia.

The 2025 Informal Cross Border Trade Report indicate that June 2025, receipts from informal exports

declined by 22.3% to Ksh 124 million, while expenditure on informal imports reduced to Ksh 125 million.

“This resulted in a 16.7% contraction in the total volume of informal trade from Ksh 299 million to Ksh 249.1 million, and a shift of informal trade balance from a surplus to a deficit of Ksh 1.1 million over the two reference periods,” said KNBS.

The 14-day data collection in the month on December 2024 showed that informal cross border trade recorded a surplus of Ksh 20.4 million after exports hit Ksh 159.7 million against imports valued at Ksh 139.3 million.

The survey by KNBS shows that last year, food and live animals were the main goods traded at the border points accounting for 37.9% of informal exports and 78.5% of informal imports .

“Ethiopia and Uganda were the leading destinations for informal exports, while Tanzania was the main source

of informal imports. In December 2024, Ethiopia accounted for 36.1% of total informal imports, followed

by Uganda at 31.7%. In June 2025, Tanzania overtook all other countries as the top source of informal

imports, contributing 47.2%, mainly consisting of food and live animals,” said the bureau.

According to the findings, Moyale border station was the leading corridor for informal exports despite the slowdown in export volume. The border crossing point recorded informal exports worth Ksh 51.9 last year from Ksh 63.8 million recorded in 2024.

“Suam and Mandera (Ethiopia) border stations emerged as key alternative routes, while Namanga, Malaba, and Isebania were the main entry points for informal imports,” said KNBS.

The data further reveals that 79.7pc of informal traders at the b0rder were male while motorbike was the most preferred mode of transport.

The survey covered Busia, Malaba, Suam and Lwakhakha borders with Uganda, Isebania, Namanga,

Taveta, Lunga Lunga, and Loitokitok with Tanzania, Moyale, Mandera and Rhamu border with Ethiopia and Madera Border Point 1 with Somalia.

Reporting originally appeared via KBC Digital. Read the full source for additional context.