Nairobi: Kenya has launched a fresh push to reset its export strategy following the official expiry of the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) programme. The government is accelerating diversification and value addition to cushion exporters from shifting global trade conditions.
According to Kenya News Agency, Kenya Export Promotion and Branding Agency (KEPROBA) Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Floice Mukabana stated that the lapse of AGOA-one of the key frameworks supporting Kenya’s textile and apparel exports to the US-necessitates a reimagining of the country’s export base. Mukabana emphasized the need for Kenya to identify new products and pursue markets beyond traditional partners.
Mukabana noted that while Kenya now falls under a 10 percent incremental tariff, which still offers a competitive advantage compared to several rivals, relying solely on favorable exemptions is not sustainable in the long term. “AGOA has expired, and while Kenya remains competitive under the new tariff structure, we must not rely on preferential access alone. Our goal is to diversify products, diversify markets, and increase value addition so that shocks in one market do not destabilize the entire sector,” she explained.
The expiry of the AGOA programme, Mukabana noted, coincides with ongoing challenges such as global standards, rising logistics costs, and buyer acquisition hurdles faced by Kenyan SMEs trying to enter export markets. In response, KEPROBA is implementing a product development cycle to train exporters on standards, branding, packaging, and trade finance, with collaborations from entities like the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA), Kenya Ports Authority (KPA), Exports Processing Zones Authority (EPZA), DHL, and the Kenya National Chamber of Commerce to streamline the export ecosystem.
KEPROBA is targeting a 10 percent annual growth in exports by 2028, guided by a strategy to shift Kenya from bulk commodity exports to higher-value finished products. To achieve this, Kenya aims to expand its footprint within the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) through the guided trade initiative, which allows select products to enter African markets under preferential terms. The agency is pushing for exports of roasted and branded Kenyan coffee, packaged tea, processed horticultural goods, leather and livestock products, and new-generation foods such as live insects and insect-based supplements.
Speaking in Kisumu during a roundtable with exporters, Mukabana highlighted Kenya’s export sector’s resilience, with exports rising to Sh1.1 trillion last year despite the COVID-19 period. This growth was attributed to strong performances in tea, coffee, textiles, flowers, fruits, and vegetables. However, she stressed the need for Kenya to broaden its export portfolio to reduce reliance on these commodities.
Mukabana mentioned that Kisumu is being positioned as a significant growth frontier due to its expanding blue economy, fisheries, agro-processing, rice farming, and strategic access to Uganda and Tanzania. Emerging export categories from the region include fish leather and live insects, which are gaining global recognition as alternative proteins.
The CEO stated that KEPROBA will compile insights gathered from regional forums into a national white paper to guide future policies ahead of the Exporters Convention in Nairobi in June 2026. “We must use this moment to build an export sector that is resilient, innovative, and less dependent on single markets or policy exemptions,” Mukabana affirmed. “This is our opportunity to reset,” she concluded.
