Illicit alcohol floods Nyanza as authorities link 60% of bottles to counterfeit

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More than half of the alcohol consumed in Nyanza could be illegal, authorities have warned, painting a grim picture of a region where counterfeit brews are outpacing legitimate brands and putting lives at risk.

The Anti-Counterfeit Authority (ACA) says recent enforcement data, combined with private sector studies, indicates that up to 60 per cent of alcohol circulating in the lake region may be illicit.

The revelation has triggered an intensified multi-agency crackdown targeting manufacturers, distributors and cross-border supply chains.

Speaking in Kisumu during a sensitisation forum for security officers and stakeholders, ACA Deputy Director for Education and Public Awareness Agnes Karingu said alcohol now accounts for more than 20 per cent of all counterfeit goods seized in Nyanza, the single largest category among targeted products.

“When you compare our seizure data, where alcohol forms over 20 per cent of confiscated goods, with studies suggesting up to 60 per cent of alcohol in the market is illicit, then the concern becomes very real,” she said.

Karingu described the surge as no longer just an economic crime but a public health emergency.

She warned that many consumers unknowingly buy unsafe drinks, exposing themselves to harmful substances while denying the government millions in unpaid taxes.

“Counterfeit alcohol has grown beyond hurting legitimate businesses. It is a direct threat to consumer safety,” she said.

While illicit liquor dominates seizures, the authority says other counterfeit goods are also thriving in the region.

Electrical and electronic items account for about 18 per cent of confiscated products, followed by cosmetics, household goods, and other fast-moving consumer items.

Mobile phones, driven by high demand, have also become prime targets for fraudsters. With the planting season underway, the agency expects another spike this time in fake agricultural inputs.

"Counterfeiters follow demand,” Karingu said. “During planting seasons, fake seeds and fertilisers increase. When it’s time for top dressing, they adjust accordingly.”

The warning comes as farmers across western Kenya prepare their fields, raising fears that substandard farm inputs could compound losses in an already strained agricultural sector.

Authorities say Kisumu’s strategic location has made it particularly vulnerable.

Nyanza Regional Commissioner Flora Mworoa noted that the lakeside city serves as a commercial hub and gateway to the East African market, increasing the risk of infiltration by cross-border counterfeit networks.

“Kisumu is a gateway to the East African Community and other parts of Africa. We must ensure counterfeit goods do not penetrate our markets,” she said.

Mworoa identified Lake Victoria and border points with Uganda and Tanzania as key entry routes.

She said multi-agency teams have mounted operations in Ahero and along the Migori–Kisii corridor, areas believed to be conduits for illicit consignments.

Officers drawn from the Kenya Revenue Authority, immigration, and the National Police Service have heightened surveillance at official border crossings, she added.

The crackdown is anchored in the Anti-Counterfeit Act of 2008, which empowers the ACA to collaborate with agencies such as the Kenya Bureau of Standards and the Kenya Revenue Authority in investigations and prosecutions.

Under the law, first-time offenders face fines of up to three times the value of seized goods, while repeat offenders risk penalties of up to five times the value.

Karingu said prosecutors are increasingly filing consolidated charge sheets, combining offenses under counterfeit, standards, tax, and public health laws to secure stiffer penalties.

“Most counterfeit goods are substandard, and often tax has been evaded. When we consolidate charges, courts are able to impose stronger penalties,” she said, urging manufacturers to safeguard their intellectual property rights to ease enforcement.

Even as enforcement tightens, officials say the battle cannot be won without public vigilance.

Mworoa challenged consumers to avoid suspiciously cheap products, warning that unusually low prices are often the first indicator of counterfeit goods.

"If a product is unusually cheap compared to what you know, think twice,” she said.

The forum resolved to strengthen grassroots intelligence gathering, including through chiefs and assistant chiefs, as authorities seek to dismantle networks that have entrenched themselves in the lake region.