Tight wallets, low cheer as Kenyans cut back for X-mas

Shops in Mombasa are busy as residents and tourists buy new clothes ahead of Christmas and New Year. [Omondi Onyango, Standard]

For a season meant to bring joy and celebration, Christmas this year for Kenyans mirrors the hardships surrounding the birth of Jesus. 

Tough economic times have collided with thin wallets, leaving many unable to match the festive spirit. 

Reduced incomes for salaried workers due to taxes and levies, coupled with declining revenues for business owners, paint a grim picture for many families this season. The country’s economic structure appears to have hit those at the lowest rung the hardest. 

“It is a bad year,” Nairobi barber Cyrus Gichumbu told The Standard earlier this week. “There is no money in circulation.” 

For Ruth Jebet, a graphic designer, Christmas this year may bring more worries than joy, especially for parents facing school fees and other responsibilities early next year. 

“Every day I hear about taxes—this one, that one. Life doesn’t seem to be getting any easier,” she says. 

Salaried workers have had to contend with higher deductions, including the Affordable Housing Levy, Social Health Insurance Fund and an increased National Social Security Fund, which is set to rise again next year. 

On top of this, the soaring cost of basic commodities has left many Kenyans struggling to put a meal on the table. 

Even those who rely on relatives abroad are feeling the pinch. A crackdown on migrants under US President Donald Trump is affecting remittances, further dampening festive spirits. 

Latest data from the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) shows that diaspora remittances fell to $388.3 million in November 2025, down 8.3 per cent from $423.2 million in the same month last year. 

At an average exchange rate of Sh128.94 per dollar, the inflows amounted to about Sh50.1 billion, a notable drop from the Sh54.58 billion recorded in November 2024. 

This decline means families relying on relatives abroad, especially from the US, the largest source of remittances to Kenya, have less to spend this festive season. 

In its weekly bulletin released on Friday, CBK emphasised the importance of these inflows. “Remittance inflows remain a key source of foreign exchange earnings and continue to support the balance of payments,” the report said. 

Meanwhile, despite pledges of job creation for the youth, the Kenya Kwanza government has faced criticism as many young people have lost their jobs amid the depressed economy. In desperation, many young people have turned to menial jobs abroad, only to fall prey to unscrupulous recruitment agencies. 

Others have ventured into informal trade, such as selling second-hand goods, but reduced disposable incomes have left businesses struggling. 

“People are coming, but they are buying less,” says Fred Kageni, a second-hand shoe trader at Ngara Market in Nairobi. “Many are just window-shopping. Money is tight and food has become the priority.” 

The strain has forced families to redirect already delayed or reduced incomes towards essentials such as food, school fees, rent and medical care, leaving little room for festive spending. In previous years, the season was largely defined by financial support from abroad, injecting excitement and renewed confidence into households. 

Families planned for new clothes, travel, gift exchanges and plentiful meals. This year, however, the narrative has shifted, with remittances reduced or arriving later than expected, dampening the traditional cheer of the festive season. 

Households have also adopted a more cautious approach to decorations. Once defined by bright lights and elaborate displays, the festive look has given way to modest, budget-conscious choices.