Lead image for Auditor indicts State watchdogs over toxic pesticides.
A performance audit on pesticide regulation in Kenya submitted to Parliament has raised an alarm over millions of Kenyans being exposed to cancerous, banned chemicals as responsible government agencies look the other way.
The exposure to hazardous, unregulated or banned pesticides is through direct farming practices and contaminated food.
In the June 2026 performance audit report on regulation of pesticide use in Kenya before parliament, Auditor-General Nancy Gathungu delivers a damning 10-point list of regulatory failures that places the Pest Control Products Board (PCPB), a state agency, directly at the crime scene of a massive national food safety failure.
According to the Auditor-General, effective regulation of pesticides supports the Bottom-up Economic Transformation Agenda (Beta) “of agriculture transformation and inclusive growth and manufacturing.”
“There is limited awareness creation to farmers and agro-dealers on proper use and disposal of pesticides and pesticide waste,” the audit says.
The audit adds; “there is a high risk of improper application of pesticides and unsafe disposal of associated waste by farmers, leading to increased exposure to toxic substances, as well as soil and water contamination.”
The audit was conducted between September 2024 and March 2026 and covered the period 2021/22 to March 2026.
It sampled 12 counties- Nairobi, Kisumu, Busia, Uasin Gishu, Kericho, Embu, Kirinyaga, Mombasa, Kwale, Kilifi, Nyandarua and Nakuru.