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Why Muguka ban in Kenya is unlikely to work

Muguka

Muguka traders display their wares in Nakuru City

Photo credit: File | Nation Media Group

What you need to know:

  • Khat is also cultivated in other countries, including Madagascar, Uganda, Yemen and Ethiopia.
  • Somalia is a key destination for Kenyan khat, with 19 tonnes shipped daily in 2022.

Khat – the stimulant leaves and twigs of the plant Catha edulis – seemed to have secure legal status in Kenya despite being illegal elsewhere.

It had been declared an official cash crop in 2016, and efforts were under way to formalise its mostly informal production and trade.