Kenya: Paying to Work - Bribery and the Earnings of Kenya's Informal Workers

Source: AllAfrica Global Media · 2026-11-09T04:36:17.000Z · Finance

[African Arguments] For many informal workers in Kenya, earning a living also means paying for the right to do so. A motorbike taxi rider, a hawker or a small trader may be asked for money by a police officer or a county inspector. It is not a tax set by law, nor necessarily a fine for an offence. It is an informal payment that becomes part of the daily conditions of running a business. According to the World Bank, informal workers can lose up to 20 percent of their daily earnings this way.

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