- NEMA has seized 4,995 banned plastic carrier bags and arrested two traders in Embu.
- The traders face fines of up to Ksh4 million or imprisonment of up to four years if convicted.
- NEMA has warned businesses to comply with the 2024 plastic packaging regulations as enforcement continues.
Two traders in Embu town now face a possible Ksh4 million fine, or years in jail, after the National Environment Management Authority (NEMA) seized 4,995 plastic carrier bags that are banned in Kenya. Officers arrested the pair and took them to court, where they were arraigned to answer charges of being in possession of the prohibited bags.
The case is a pointed reminder to retailers, shopkeepers and small businesses that stock carrier bags as part of daily trade. For many sellers, bags are a low cost item handed out with every sale. Under the law, however, even holding such stock without the proper licence can put an entire business at risk.
NEMA says the penalties are deliberately heavy. Section 144 of the Environmental Management and Coordination Act (EMCA), read together with the Environmental Management and Coordination (Management and Control of Plastic Packaging Materials) Regulations, 2024, covers a wide chain of activity. Anyone who manufactures, imports, exports, uses or sells plastic carrier or flat bags without a licence commits an offence.
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On conviction, the courts can impose a prison term of at least one year but not more than four years. Alternatively, an offender can be fined between Ksh2 million and Ksh4 million. The law also allows both punishments to be applied together, which means a trader could lose their freedom and a sum that exceeds the annual turnover of many small enterprises.
The figures matter for businesses. A fine of that size is far beyond what a market stall, kiosk or small shop can absorb, and a conviction could close a business for good. A prison sentence would take the owner out of the enterprise altogether, leaving staff without jobs and customers without a supplier.
NEMA has urged members of the public to keep within the ban and warned that enforcement will continue. The authority has not indicated that the penalties will be softened. Traders who deal in packaging, whether as sellers, importers or users, will therefore need to confirm that their stock and their licences comply with the 2024 regulations before they sell another bag.
Kenyans are encouraged to use alternative shopping bags made from materials such as paper, cloth, sisal and other approved alternatives.
By reporter
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