Why Kenya’s Trade Ambitions Need Smarter Insurance

The success of Kenya's new Digital Marine Cargo Insurance should not only be measured by the number of certificates issued, but whether importers experience faster processing, fewer disputes, better compliance and stronger protection for their goods. Writes Douglas Chepkuto, the Underwriting Manager, Technical & Risk Improvement at CIC General Insurance Ltd.

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As Kenya’s trade expands, the movement of goods across our borders has become increasingly central to our economy. Every container arriving through our ports, every truck crossing a border point, and every delivery reaching a warehouse carries more than its own commercial value. It carries jobs, working capital, business continuity and, in many cases, the confidence of entrepreneurs who have invested significant resources long before their goods arrive.

Despite this, conversations around protecting imported goods have been progressing with minimal change. Marine cargo insurance has often been viewed merely as a document needed to complete the import clearance process. That view is no longer applicable in today's world, where interruptions in the supply of goods, unpredictable shipping costs, climate-related risks, changing laws, and rising customer expectations have become a reality.

Kenya’s aims to remain a regional logistics hub, support enterprise growth, strengthen formal systems and improve the ease of doing business.

As trade volumes grow, the systems that protect cargo also need to mature. Globally, more than 80 percent of trade by volume is transported by sea, making marine transport central to supply chains and economic resilience. This becomes even more significant when viewed against Africa’s trade ambitions. The African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) aims to create a single market covering 55 African Union countries, about 1.3 billion people, and an estimated combined Gross Domestic Product of KSh 439 trillion . If fully implemented, the agreement could raise Africa’s income by an estimated KSh 58 trillion by 2035 and lift 30 million people out of extreme poverty.

Realising these gains will require more than reducing import taxes. Success will depend on how efficiently goods move across borders, how seamlessly supply chains connect and how much confidence businesses have in the systems that support trade. In this context, marine insurance is not simply an administrative requirement; it is part of the trust infrastructure that enables commerce to flourish across the continent.