Kenya shouldn't import pesticides that are banned in other countries

In 2018 Kenya imported 17,803 tonnes of pesticides. [iStockphoto]

Given the nature of the Kenyan economy, pesticides have increasingly been used to boost agricultural production. However, there have been double standards in the international trade of pesticides and their active ingredients.

A report by Route to Food in 2019 found that about 32 per cent of pesticides allowed for use in Kenya have been withdrawn from the European Market and banned in the European Union for reasons related to their potential chronic health effect, high toxicity to bees and fish as well as persistence in the environment.