A recent report by Anti-Counterfeits Agency (ACA) has revealed that nearly three-quarters of Kenyans use counterfeit goods.
The government bureau says that the most counterfeited goods in the market are mobile phones, alcohol,DVD player and bottled water are the most counterfeited goods at 51.8 percent , 30.8 percent,26.4 percent and 24 percent respectively.These are followed by lubricants, computer software, accessories and toners.
Out of the 70 percent who use bogus products, 19 percent purchase the goods knowingly while 49.6 percent claim they bought the goods because they were cheap.Additional 17.3 percent were looking for original items but couldn’t find and 18.3 percent were not aware of the risks.According to the government bureau, out of the 70 percent consumers using bogus products, 19 percent purchase the goods knowingly while 49.6 percent claim they bought the goods because they were cheap.
Additional 17.3 percent were looking for original items but couldn’t find and 18.3 percent were not aware of the risks.
ACA chair Flora Mutahi attributed counterfeiting to branding and trademark manipulation, mis-spelling of names and colouring.Mutahi went on to state that the country loses an estimated Ksh200 billion per year due to trade in counterfeit products.
“Kenya is indeed ahead of its counterparts in the fight against counterfeits but manned land borders open the country to illicit trade,” remarked ACA chief executive Elema Halake.