Maritime and transit insurance premiums grew at the slowest pace in four years in 2025, reflecting gaps in enforcing rules that require all imports to be insured locally.
Fresh data from the Insurance Regulatory Authority (IRA) show that maritime and transit insurance premiums grew by about 2.9 percent last year, well below potential given Kenya’s expanding import bill.
Comparatively, provisional data from the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics show that Kenya’s import bill rose to Sh2.79 trillion in 2025, up from Sh2.69 trillion the previous year, representing growth of 3.55 percent. This divergence between premium growth and import expansion points to lost underwriting opportunities.
IRA data show that marine and transit premiums rose to Sh4.8 billion in 2025, from Sh4.66 billion in 2024, marking the slowest growth since 2020 when the sector was hit by Covid-19 disruptions.
The slowdown comes despite the IRA and Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) teaming up in February last year to enforce rules aimed at boosting uptake of local marine insurance.
However, implementation faced headwinds, first from system hitches and, secondly, weak enforcement by both KRA and IRA.
Marine insurance policies protect goods against risks such as loss, damage and theft during transit by sea, land and air from the port of origin. The cover shields importers from losses and gives financiers confidence to lend to businesses ordering goods.
Enforcement gaps
The joint enforcement effort by KRA and IRA had been expected to boost compliance with amendments to the Marine Insurance Act (Cap 390) and the Insurance Act, which outlaw the sourcing of marine cargo insurance from insurers not licensed locally.
The changes took effect on January 1, 2017, but compliance has remained low, as KRA has continued clearing imports regardless of whether the marine cover is sourced locally or abroad. Association of Kenya Insurers (AKI) chief executive Tom Gichuhi said the practice persists despite recent directives.
‘We have done everything right as an industry, including developing the right products, but for as long as there is a gap in enforcement, the story will remain the same,’ said Mr Gichuhi.
‘Whatever system is built, if KRA is not on board to enforce it, it will never work. Until a marine insurance certificate from a local insurer is made a mandatory pre-shipment document, nothing much will change,’ the AKI boss added.
KRA had said that, effective February 14, 2025, all importers would be required to digitally procure marine cargo insurance cover from locally licensed insurers before obtaining customs clearance.
The taxman indicated that importers would request digital marine cargo insurance certificates through clearing agents, mobile apps, dedicated portals or underwriters’ platforms linked to the IRA electronic system.
The processed certificate from the IRA platform was to be submitted electronically to KRA’s Integrated Customs Management System (iCMS), the key platform for clearing import and export cargo.
However, the rollout proved problematic, with many imports still arriving with cover sourced from the country of origin.
Marine insurance premiums recorded their fastest growth in 2017, rising by 34.4 percent to Sh3.63 billion following the introduction of compulsory local sourcing. The segment then declined for three consecutive years before returning to growth in 2021, according to IRA data.
Kenya’s value of principal imports reached Sh2.706 trillion in 2024, up 3.6 percent from Sh2.611 trillion a year earlier and 64.7 percent higher than Sh1.643 trillion five years earlier. Insurers say this indicates the sector’s untapped potential in marine cover.