New motorcycle registrations in the first 11 months of 2025 have already outnumbered the total recorded in 2024, a boost driven by easier access to credit and changing consumer habits.
Data from the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (KNBS) indicates that 145,714 motorcycles were registered between January and November 2025, more than double the 68,804 units registered during the entire 2024.
This marks a clear rebound after three years of declining sales caused by high taxes, rising fuel costs, and reduced purchasing power.
Registration levels like these were last seen in 2021, when 262,624 motorcycles were registered in the first 11 months of the year. Demand then collapsed in subsequent years as fiscal and operating pressures tightened.
Analysts attribute the recovery to improved credit availability, falling interest rates, and renewed investment by delivery companies and ride-hailing platforms.
“On the macroeconomic front, the impact of lower interest rates is starting to be felt in the real economy. By the end of last year, growth of credit in the private sector had risen to 6.3 percent from a contraction of two percent at the beginning of last year. This could be allowing businesses to have a bit more funds to invest in working capital,” said Ken Gichinga, chief economist at Mentoria Economics.
“On the microeconomic front, there is a shift in consumption patterns. The convenience of online shopping is creating a big demand for delivery services. There has also been a rise in demand for ride-hailing services,” he added.
The rebound follows a sharp decline in motorcycle registrations over three years, which had pushed numbers to levels not seen in more than two decades.
KNBS data shows that registrations fell by 4.69 percent to 72,868 units in 2024 as both commercial and personal demand weakened. Registrations had peaked at 291,553 in 2021 before plunging by nearly three-quarters by the end of 2024.
Motorcycle demand had previously grown steadily from 2008, after the government waived import taxes, making boda boda transport one of the fastest-expanding informal sectors.
The recent recovery comes despite continued tax pressures that raise the cost of motorcycles. Imported motorcycles carry a flat excise duty of Sh12,952 per unit, with fully built units also charged a higher import duty than locally assembled bikes.
Completely knocked-down parts attract a lower import duty of 10 percent, compared with 25 percent for fully built units, and are exempt from excise tax.
Local assemblers such as Toyota Kenya, Makindu Motors, and Honda Motorcycle Kenya have benefited from these incentives, supporting both factory jobs and related industries.
A proposal to introduce a 10 percent excise duty in the Finance Bill 2024 was rejected by lawmakers, who cited concerns that it would increase costs in a sector employing millions.
