Share of global plastic waste imports in Kenya
Kenya: Share of global plastic waste imports was 0.1% in 2023. ◆ Volatile
Share of global plastic waste imports in Kenya, 1992–2023
Source: United Nations Comtrade Database (2025); United Nations Comtrade Database (2023) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
Kenya recorded 0.1% for share of global plastic waste imports in 2023. That is the highest value across all 25 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 14.7% on the previous year and up 4,410.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of global plastic waste imports in Kenya peaked at 0.1% in 2023 and was at its lowest, 0.0%, in 2002.
Kenya ranks 46th of 183 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Share of global plastic waste imports in Kenya, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1992 | 0.0% | — |
| 1997 | 0.0% | -10.6% |
| 1998 | 0.0% | -34.2% |
| 1999 | 0.0% | -1.3% |
| 2000 | 0.0% | -21.9% |
| 2001 | 0.0% | +9.2% |
| 2002 | 0.0% | -84.3% |
| 2003 | 0.0% | +107.6% |
| 2004 | 0.0% | +17.2% |
| 2005 | 0.0% | +302.6% |
| 2006 | 0.0% | -40.8% |
| 2007 | 0.0% | +45.3% |
| 2008 | 0.0% | +36.1% |
| 2009 | 0.0% | -46.5% |
| 2010 | 0.0% | -11.8% |
| 2013 | 0.0% | +55.2% |
| 2015 | 0.0% | +276.8% |
| 2016 | 0.0% | +56.3% |
| 2017 | 0.0% | -9.1% |
| 2018 | 0.0% | +147.0% |
| 2019 | 0.1% | +83.6% |
| 2020 | 0.1% | +20.6% |
| 2021 | 0.1% | +33.5% |
| 2022 | 0.1% | +0.7% |
| 2023 | 0.1% | +14.7% |
Kenya compared with similar countries
- Kenya's 0.1% is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 0.0%, 21.9× the median. (45 countries reporting)
- Kenya's 0.1% is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 0.0%, 59.5× the median. (41 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 4 |
| 2000s | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 10 |
| 2010s | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.1% | 7 |
| 2020s | 0.1% | 0.1% | 0.1% | 4 |
Countries ranked near Kenya
More environment data for Kenya
- Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly -8.08 Percentage change (2025)
- Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly -4.73 Percentage change (2025)
- Standard Deviation, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Standard Deviation 0.27 °C (2025)
- Temperature change 1.12 °C (2025)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), annual 2.25 % change on previous year (2024)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), per unit 0 Mt CO2e per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), per capita 0 Mt CO2e per person (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Agriculture (Mt CO2e), annual growth rate 2.87 % change on previous year (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Agriculture (Mt CO2e), per unit of GDP 0 Mt CO2e per US$ of GDP (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of global plastic waste imports in Kenya?
- Share of global plastic waste imports in Kenya was 0.1% in 2023, according to United Nations Comtrade Database (2025); United Nations Comtrade Database (2023) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest share of global plastic waste imports recorded in Kenya?
- The highest recorded value was 0.1% in 2023.
- What is the lowest share of global plastic waste imports recorded in Kenya?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.0% in 2002.
- How does Kenya rank for share of global plastic waste imports?
- Kenya ranks 46th out of 183 countries with data for 2023.
- Is share of global plastic waste imports rising or falling in Kenya?
- Over the last ten years it is up 4,410.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Kenya data come from?
- The figures come from United Nations Comtrade Database (2025); United Nations Comtrade Database (2023) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Share of global plastic waste imports. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 25 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Percentage of global plastic waste imports that a country accounts for.