Kenya: Report Flags Mombasa As Key Heroin Entry Point

Nairobi — A new report has flagged Mombasa as the main entry point for heroin into Kenya, highlighting the coastal city's central role in the distribution of the illicit drug.

The Africa Organised Crime Index 2025, released by ENACT Africa--a partnership between the Institute for Security Studies, Interpol and the Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime--says the drug is mainly shipped from Afghanistan by sea and overland routes.

"From South-West Asia to Kenya (8.0), particularly in or near Mombasa, multiple seizures of hundreds of kilograms on vessels in the Indian Ocean highlight Mombasa's strategic importance in the heroin trade," the report states.

It adds that in 2025, Southern Africa (5.15) and East Africa (4.17) recorded the highest regional scores for the heroin trade in Africa. Heroin destined for markets in Asia, Africa, Europe and, to a lesser extent, North America is mainly shipped from Afghanistan through interconnected maritime and overland routes.

For more than 25 years, Mombasa has remained a major entry point for hard drugs, including heroin and cocaine, amid high local usage linked to joblessness and other social factors.

In January 2026, detectives from the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) arrested two people in Utange, Kisauni Sub-County, with 1,346 grams of heroin valued at Sh4 million.

To curb usage, heroin is classified as a prohibited narcotic under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (Control) Act, Cap 245 of 1994, which was amended in 2022 to introduce tougher penalties.

Under the law, a person found with less than one gram of heroin faces a fine of at least Sh5 million or a minimum five-year jail term. Those caught with between one and 100 grams risk a fine of not less than Sh30 million, imprisonment of at least 30 years, or both.

The report also flags Mombasa as a key shipping hub for the illicit ivory trade, with consignments destined for Asian markets including Vietnam, Hong Kong, the Philippines and Malaysia.

It further notes that trafficking of cheetahs from East Africa remains rampant, estimating that about 300 cheetah cubs are smuggled annually through Somalia to private collectors in Gulf countries.

Read the original article on Capital FM.