Kenyans cross the border for cheap fuel

Drivers and Boda boda operators mounted a roadblock  in Kakamega town to check out those matatu which were operating , passengers were forced to end their journey as drivers demanded reduced fuel cost on May 18,2026.[Benjamin Sakwa, Standard]

High fuel prices in Kenya have forced some public transport operators in the North Rift to cross the border to Uganda to buy the commodity.

Kenyans in Turkana, Trans-Nzoia and West Pokot counties are streaming to the neighbouring country to secure the product at a lower price compared to prices offered locally.

Uganda and Tanzania continue to offer the lowest prices, with a litre of diesel in Uganda going at Sh189.4.

Amid pressure on households and businesses that are grappling with the rising inflation and tight fiscal conditions, most Kenyans are seeking an option to overcome the challenge posed by unaffordable fuel prices.

Investigations by the Standard discovered that some public transport operators in the North Rift secure fuel stock from Uganda.

Boda boda riders interviewed by the Standard said they are smuggling fuel from Uganda because the skyrocketing fuel cost has forced them to go for the oil products in Uganda.

"The cost of fuel in our country is unattainable and hurting businesses. This is why we cross the border to buy the commodity from Uganda, sold at low prices," said a rider who gave his only name as Peter.

Smuggling of the oil products from Uganda is thriving in areas of Kacheliba, Alale, Loima, Suam, Nasal and Kanyarkwat.

Dealers involved in the fuel racket said they sneak into the country both day and night, as the security agents are compromised.

The Kenyans getting from Uganda complained that the government had kept quiet when they were being exploited by the rising fuel costs.

"It is not our fault to sneak the product from Uganda. The local fuel cost is unaffordable and explorative,' lamented a businessman in Kitale.

Local farmers have too on the recently used fuel from Uganda to beat the local prices.

" The high cost of production forced me to go for cheap fuel from Uganda," said a cotton farmer in Kacheliba.
Uganda does not set or regulate maximum retail fuel prices; instead, it operates under an open-market system where individual petrol stations determine their own pump rates.

Currently, super petrol retails at an average of UGX 6,000 to UGX 9,000 per litre (approx. Ksh300), while Diesel averages UGX 5,000 to UGX 5,500 per litre, which is about Ksh190. Uganda has the most expensive petrol and the cheapest diesel in the region.

Kenya’s higher taxation on petroleum products has kept pump prices elevated compared with its neighbours. Landlocked Uganda faces additional logistical hurdles, relying on imports via pipeline and road networks, which delays price adjustments and sustains costs despite efforts by the Uganda National Oil Company and Petroleum Authority of Uganda to develop domestic refining capacity.