NAIROBI, Kenya, Aug. 5 – The Competition Authority of Kenya (CAK) has attributed the slow resolution of cartel cases to limited staffing and the complexity of investigating price-fixing, bid-rigging and output-restriction schemes.
CAK Director General David Kemei said the authority takes an average of three years to conclude a cartel case, a timeline he noted is comparable to other established competition regulators globally despite operating with significantly fewer resources.
“Let me put this in perspective. Take the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) in the UK. In FY2025, the CMA employed around 1,130 people to serve a population of roughly 68 million,” Kemei said.
“The CAK, by comparison, has 75 staff serving a population of similar size, on a budget of approximately Sh700 million. That disparity matters. Regarding timelines, the CAK takes an average of three years to close a cartel case, which is well within the range seen at other well-established competition agencies globally.”
Kemei said the authority has invested Sh45 million in a forensic laboratory to improve investigations and shorten case turnaround times.
“Our legal framework has been lauded as robust, and the real task now is translating that framework into more visible enforcement activity and stronger deterrence, including scaling up dawn raids in key sectors of the economy where action will benefit the majority of Kenyans,” he said.
He added that the authority is also reviewing its penalty and settlement procedures in line with recommendations from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), signalling a shift towards tougher enforcement against anti-competitive practices.
