Kenya advocates for a consistent ban on dangerous pesticides across the Comesa region.
In a significant move towards safeguarding food safety and public health, the Ministry of Agriculture in Kenya has taken decisive action, withdrawing 77 end-use products from the Kenyan market and restricting the use of 202 products on various crops. This action comes as the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) faces challenges in regional harmonization of chemical safety standards concerning hazardous pesticides.
Kenya, a member state, has been vocal about the need for a uniform ban and harmonized chemical standards across the region. The country's calls emphasize the urgency and necessity of this harmonization, highlighting the risks posed by the circulation of hazardous pesticides in the COMESA bloc.
Progress in this area includes individual country bans, such as Kenya's recent pesticide bans, public advocacy, and governmental calls for enforcing shared prohibitions and chemical standards within COMESA. Discussions on joint approaches, like regulatory harmonization and collaborative efforts in areas like vaccine development related to pesticide impacts, are also underway.
However, challenges remain. Implementing a regionwide crackdown on hazardous pesticides is complicated due to differing national laws, enforcement capabilities, and interests among member states. The continued availability of banned pesticides in some COMESA countries risks cross-border trade of hazardous products. The technical and regulatory complexities of aligning standards among diverse legal and agricultural contexts further complicate matters.
The Agriculture Cabinet Secretary of Kenya, Mutahi Kagwe, recently called for a regional crackdown on hazardous pesticides within the Comesa bloc. Kagwe emphasized the urgency of harmonising chemical standards in the region, stating that countries should not allow fragmented policies to stand in the way of the people's safety.
Kagwe also declared that the time to act on hazardous agrochemicals is now. He called for the immediate harmonisation of chemical safety standards and the enforcement of collective prohibitions on dangerous substances across all member states. These remarks were made during the 9th Joint Comesa ministerial meeting on agriculture, natural resources, and environment in Lusaka on Friday.
Other proposals from Kenya during the meeting included the sharing of agricultural technologies such as livestock vaccines, the development of protocols for cross-border trade in certified seeds, and digital innovations for agricultural planning. The use or importation of the 151 products identified as posing unacceptable risks to human health, crops, livestock, and the environment remains prohibited until the end of the review process.
In addition, the Ministry of Agriculture in Kenya has reviewed the Draft Pest Control Products Bill to enhance the regulation of Pest Control Products (PCPs). The reviewed Draft Pest Control Products Bill was approved by the Cabinet. The Pest Control Products Board (PCPB) in Kenya conducted a comprehensive review of pesticide active ingredients registered in the Kenyan market. A further 151 products are under review by the PCPB, with a decision on their approval expected by December 2025.
Lack of consistency in chemical regulations, Kagwe stated, allows unscrupulous traders to exploit enforcement gaps, contributing to widespread contamination and erosion of consumer trust in local and regional food systems. Kenya has declared its readiness to support regional reforms, calling for bold leadership to transform Comesa from a "talk shop" into a functional platform for economic development, agricultural resilience, and food independence.
In conclusion, COMESA is at a critical juncture where harmonizing chemical safety standards on hazardous pesticides is urgently needed but faces significant enforcement and coordination obstacles. Kenya is playing a prominent role in pushing for faster, united regional action to protect public health and food safety.
- Kenya, through its Agriculture Ministry, has taken action to remove hazardous pesticides from the local market and restrict their use on crops, aligning with the urgency for a regional harmonization of chemical standards within the COMESA bloc.
- At the 9th Joint Comesa ministerial meeting on agriculture, natural resources, and environment, the Agriculture Cabinet Secretary of Kenya, Mutahi Kagwe, called for immediate harmonization of chemical safety standards and collective prohibitions on dangerous substances across all member states.
- In addition to pesticide bans and advocacy, Kenya has proposed sharing agricultural technologies, developing protocols for cross-border trade in certified seeds, and implementing digital innovations for agricultural planning.
- The continued availability of banned pesticides in some COMESA countries and the technical and regulatory complexities of aligning standards among diverse legal and agricultural contexts pose challenges to the regionwide crackdown on hazardous pesticides.
- The lack of consistency in chemical regulations leaves room for unscrupulous traders to exploit enforcement gaps, leading to widespread contamination and erosion of consumer trust in local and regional food systems.
