NAIROBI, Kenya, May 15 – Cartels and market concentration are driving up the cost of essential goods like fertilizer and cooking oil in Kenya, according to a new report by the COMESA Competition Commission.
The report, part of a wider investigation across East and Southern Africa, says Kenyan agro-dealers are applying excessive markups on fertilizer, keeping prices high despite a global drop in input costs.
“African agri-food markets are not working,” the report notes, citing high consumer prices, low producer earnings, and persistent import dependence as key structural failures.
In the edible oils market, the Commission found that Kenyans pay nearly double the production and input costs before VAT, with the margin differences particularly stark in urban areas.
“These pricing distortions are undermining farmers and punishing consumers,” the report states, pointing to inefficiencies in transport, storage, and distribution systems as aggravating factors.
The Commission is calling on member states to tighten market surveillance, overhaul trade regulations, and dismantle non-tariff barriers distorting regional food markets.
The findings come as calls intensify to reform agricultural pricing and support smallholder farmers, who remain vital to food security across the continent.
