Amidst trade and diplomatic rows with East African neighbours, data from the Kenya Bureau of Statistics (KNBS) released on January 8, showed that Kenya's exports to Uganda declined by a whooping Ksh2 billion in October 2023 compared to the previous month, with the trend being replicated in December.
For the first time since January 2023, Kenya was unable to hit Ksh9 billion mark, raising concerns that the recently strained relationship with her neighbours might have contributed to the situation.
For the month of August, Kenya exported goods worth Ksh10 billion but the amount decreased to Ksh8 billion for two consecutive months.
Despite the Ksh2 billion drop, Uganda remained Kenya’s biggest trading partner in terms of exports with Pakistan coming second at Ksh8.08 billion.
In Tanzania, which has also been the subject of recent development tiffs with Kenya, exports dipped from Ksh5.8 billion to Ksh5.1 billion between October and November 2023.
Kenya was able to cover the deficit brought by the dip in exports to Uganda and Tanzania through a surge of trade with Pakistan which recorded a Ksh2 billion increase over the same period.
Other countries where Kenya recorded an increase in export volumes were Germany, Rwanda, the Netherlands, and the United Arab Emirates.
Trade with Germany surged from Ksh899 million to Ksh934 million while exports destined for Rwanda jumped from Ksh3.0 billion to Ksh3.4 billion.
For the Netherlands, Kenya exported goods worth Ksh5.1 billion in October 2023 with the amount increasing steadily to Ksh5.2 billion in the succeeding month while goods exported to UAE increased from Ksh3.2 billion to Ksh3.7 billion over the same period.
Over the same period, Kenya saw a dip in export trade with the United Kingdom, Egypt, the United States, and France.
Kenya’s biggest trade exports included food and beverages, industrial supplies, and consumer goods.
Other goods exported included; fuel and lubricants, machinery and other capital equipment, and transport equipment.
Kenya being an agricultural country relied heavily on food and beverages which made 43 per cent of total exports in November 2023.
