Kenyans have cautioned against purchasing banned harmful cosmetic products, including make-up, flooding the beauty market.
The warning issued by the Kenya Bureau of Standards (KEBS) noted that the dangerous products are largely imported from neighbouring countries.
Speaking at the commemoration of World Standards day on Friday, October 14, KEBS managing director Bernard Njiraini asked Kenyans to keep a keen eye on these products.
"These products have found their way through the porous borders carried by traders who travel to neighbouring countries," he noted.
Additionally, he raised concerns over the assumptions Kenyans make when using the said beauty products, throwing caution to the wind.
Njiriani was also surprised that banned make-up products are still being sold in the market, raising an alarm about the loopholes that needed to be fixed.
"People tend to prefer the bleaching (products) that contain mercury, hydroquinone, and other harmful components," he lamented.
The harmful products were associated with skin cancer, among other skin diseases.
At the forum, Njiraini emphasised the need to improve the quality of products sold in the country.
In 2020, the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI), in partnership with KEBS, launched a crackdown on over 130 mercury-filled cosmetics.
The targeted products were allegedly being used to lighten the skin. Despite being banned, traders always found gaps to exploit, from coordinating with rogue customs officers to bribing corrupt KEBS officials.
"We have banned a number of cosmetics that have hydroquinone and mercury and we are very sure they don't come to this country through the authorised ports of entry, but through the cracks at the border," Njiraini complained.
