Kenya convicted six human traffickers in 2025, down from 21 the previous year, even as authorities identified more victims, according to the U.S. State Department’s 2026 Trafficking in Persons Report.
The report says authorities identified 271 trafficking victims during the year, compared with 195 in the previous reporting period. The 2025 total included 260 victims of forced labour and 11 victims of sex trafficking. Officials also identified 1,021 potential victims.
Kenya remained on Tier 2, a designation for countries whose governments do not fully meet the minimum standards for eliminating trafficking but are making significant efforts to do so. The report credited Kenya with expanding victim identification and working with non-governmental organisations to provide assistance.
Law enforcement results weakened. Kenya reported prosecuting 14 trafficking cases in 2025, compared with 44 in 2024. Investigations edged up to 43 from 42. The six convictions under Kenya’s 2010 anti-trafficking law comprised five sex traffickers and one forced-labour trafficker. Prison sentences ranged from 10 to 30 years.
The report also highlighted concerns about official complicity. Kenya investigated three Ministry of Labour officials over allegations they accepted bribes linked to potential trafficking crimes involving migrant workers. However, the government reported minimal law enforcement action against allegedly complicit officials. The State Department said corruption continued to hinder anti-trafficking enforcement and victim identification.
Kenya reported providing services to 483 victims through partnerships with non-governmental organisations, up from 321 in the previous reporting period. It referred 44 victims to services, compared with none reported in the prior period, and funded the repatriation of hundreds of Kenyans exploited abroad, primarily in online scam operations in Southeast Asia.
Despite those gains, victim support remained uneven. The report said services for adults were limited, shelter access for adult men was extremely constrained, and the government’s trafficking case database was still not operational. The lack of a centralized system, it said, hindered the collection and breakdown of national statistics.
The findings underscore the contrast in Kenya’s record: more victims identified and assisted, but far fewer prosecutions and convictions, alongside unresolved concerns about official complicity.