Kenyan artisans claim that Chinese imports are driving away customers for their goods. The superior quality and cheaper prices of Chinese-made goods, in their view, disadvantage the craftspeople.
Over 7,000 artisans make their living at an open market in the nation's capital doing jua kali, a term used to refer to artisanal work like making tools or fabrics.
For forty years, Njoroge Macharia has produced charcoal stoves, also known as jikos in Swahili. He claims that imports from China have displaced his line of work. He claims that the jikos from China are having an impact on us since before they started importing them here; we used to sell a lot of them.
According to Kenya Import Data, Kenya imported goods from China worth close to $4 billion in 2021. Kenya imports a wide range of consumer and capital goods from China and exports goods worth $1.5 billion to the Asian market.
Customers, according to traders like Magdalen Vivi, who sell imported kitchenware, seek contemporary items like sufuria, or sufuria in Swahili, or nonstick cooking pots.
However, they keep asking for nonstick even when you offer aluminium or stainless steel. Since I haven't seen any nonstick sufurias made in Kenya, Vivi claimed that people prefer to buy those imported from abroad to those made locally.
According to a research on global trade conducted by the African Union, China's largest market is the continent of Africa. Some Kenyan shoppers favour the vast selection of affordable goods. Among them is Mary Wambui, a buyer.
Variety is constant, according to Wambui. You always receive new merchandise of various categories. You don't always get the same ones. There is always a new development when you visit.
According to Kenyan economist Wohoro Ndhoho, the majority of locally produced goods are crafted by craftspeople rather than machines due to a lack of robust automation and technology in Kenyan industry. Get Kenya Import Export Data.
Further, the Kenyan jua kali industry has always relied more on human labour than on machinery, according to Ndhoho. This necessarily means that products created in China can be produced in large quantities. They still beat those karais for producing mandazi (fried bread) with their hands if you visit Gikomba nowadays. So a machine may produce 1,000 for every hour they produce one.
The Kenya National Federation of Jua Kali Associations informed VOA that they have lost the regional market because of imports from China. The craftsmen federation's secretary-general is engineer Charles Kalomba.
The energy-saving jikos, which have manufactured metal and clay liners, have liners made of clay. Said Kalomba. And we used to make a lot of them for the market in East Africa. There is a significant surge of the same into the market nowadays.
South Africa is the only African nation in the top 25 exporting countries to China, according to data from the Kenya Export Promotion and Branding Agency. Kenyan authorities hope trade deals will increase sales to China. Wilfred Marube, the chief executive of the organisation, explains.
The energy-saving jikos, which have manufactured metal and clay liners, have liners made of clay. Said Kalomba. And we used to make a lot of them for the market in East Africa. There is a significant surge of the same into the market nowadays.
South Africa is the only African nation in the top 25 exporting countries to China, according to Kenya Trade Data. Kenyan authorities hope trade deals will increase sales to China. Wilfred Marube, the chief executive of the organisation, explains.
Kenyatradedata.com, a leading market research firm and the finest Kenya Export Import Data Provider, can help you locate the best export import data. They specialise in providing data on Kenya's import and export trade. The import data that Kenya's customs service collects relates to the bills of entry that importers and buyers have completed. Kenya Trade Data includes details on importers, including Importer Name, Address, Phone, Email, HS codes, Product, Price, Quantity, and Country of Origin. Finding domestic importers and customers is made easier for overseas suppliers by these helpful details. Our staffs is always there to offer the best services to help you build your business in the international market if you need any more guidance regarding Kenya Shipment Data or Kenya Customs Data.
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