Cost of Living Surges in Kenya

16 June 2022 - The cost of living in Kenya has risen to a two-year high. Information and research from the latest World Bank report has revealed that around a fifth of families in Kenya cannot afford a decent meal for themselves. This is a direct result of large increases in food prices, as well as increases in prices of consumer products.

The consumer price index from the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics shows that a kilogram of cooking oil has risen in price by 47%, whilst 500 grams of cooking fat has risen by 44.6%. The increase in prices of oil is owed largely to the reduction and disruption in supplies of palm oil from countries like Indonesia and Malaysia. In order to prioritise their domestic demand, exports of palm oil from these countries have been stopped. In turn, this has also affected prices of soaps and detergents, which are manufactured using palm oil. Subsequently, petrol prices have also risen. 

Meanwhile, the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine has given rise to prices of wheat and flour, as these countries are the biggest exporters of these goods. Prices continue to rise even as the Central Bank of Kenya has raised its benchmark lending rate in an attempt to curb the rising inflation rate. 

Rising costs

Even as the Kenyan economy recovered last year from the Covid-19 pandemic, the International Monetary Fund has predicted its slowdown to 5.7% this year. It has been predicted that many Kenyan families that are poor may soon opt to skip certain meals as a way of coping with rapidly increasing food prices. Nearly 90% of them report doing so and many are already opting for loans, government support or purchases on credit. 

Overall, climate change, the Russia-Ukraine war, drought and the lingering effects of Covid-19 are all contributing to rising costs of living, food insecurity and poverty in Kenya. Take our Cost of Living Survey and contribute to wage information in Kenya