Kenya has announced a ban on the use of plastic garbage bags and bin liners. This move comes in alignment with the government’s 2017 prohibition on the manufacture, importation, and utilization of plastic carrier bags and flat bags for commercial and household packaging.
The National Environment Management Authority (NEMA) had emphasized its commitment to ensuring full compliance with the ban and stated that there would be a rigorous crackdown to enforce it.
“To ensure environmentally sound management of the organic waste fraction, the Authority hereby directs that within 90 days from the date of this notice; All organic waste generated by households, private sector and public sector institutions, religious institutions, private and public functions and events; shall strictly be segregated and placed in 100 per cent biodegradable garbage bags/ bin liners only,” NEMA has said in a statement.
Furthermore, households were instructed to separate organic waste and transport it to designated Material Recovery Facilities for proper processing. The use of conventional plastic bags or bin liners for organic waste collection was immediately discontinued, as per NEMA’s directive.
To ensure nationwide implementation, all county governments and private waste service providers licensed by NEMA were mandated to supply their clients with 100 percent biodegradable garbage bags or bin liners. This decision was made under Section 12 of the Sustainable Waste Management Act, 2022, which mandates the segregation of non-hazardous waste into organic and non-organic fractions by both public and private sector entities.
NEMA also required homeowners and households to label and color-code their bins, containers, and bags for segregated waste. Additionally, waste service providers were directed to collect, handle, and transport segregated waste in accordance with the regulations.
