NEMA ROLLS OUT EPR PROGRAM-YOU MAKE IT YOU CLEAN IT!

WHAT IS EPR?

Extended Producer Responsibility is an environmental policy approach in which a producer’s responsibility for a product is extended to the post-consumer stage of its life cycle — especially for waste management and recycling. In colloquial terms it just means “You make it you clean it!” 

So, manufacturers are legally or voluntarily held accountable for:

• Collecting
• Recycling
• Disposing of their products after consumers are done using them 

I believe this is a step in the right direction for Kenya in terms of environmental responsibility.

BACKGROUND OF EPR REGULATIONS

A Legislative Milestone 

On November 4, 2024, Kenya ushered in a landmark shift in environmental governance by gazetting the Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) Regulations, a policy set to take full effect on May 5, 2025. The regulations mandate that producer—including manufacturers, importers, and brand owners—bear responsibility for the entire lifecycle of their products, especially post-consumer waste.

What Businesses Must Do:

To comply with the EPR regulations, every producer must:

• Register with NEMA by May 3, 2025 
• One-time registration fee: KES 5,000

• Issued a Producer Responsibility Number (PRN) for identification

• Join or establish an EPR scheme
• Can be individual or collective
• Must be registered and licensed by NEMA
• Submit a comprehensive EPR Plan, which includes:

1. Product baseline data
2. Annual production/importation volumes
3. Waste management infrastructure or partnerships in place

These steps are not optional. They represent a legal threshold for operating in the Kenyan market and must be implemented with immediate urgency.

• The Importer’s Burden

Importers are directly impacted through an environmental levy. The regulatory expectations are as follows:

• Pay KES 150 per packaging unit or product item

Applies to:

Finished products (for consumer and industrial use)

Packaged raw materials used in industrial processes]

• Obtain an EPR Certificate for every import consignment

[The certificate is valid only for that specific shipment]

• Bulk, unpackaged goods (such as cereals or oils transported via pipeline) are exempt until packaged

Enforcing Accountability

The enforcement structure is comprehensive and will be aggressively applied.

 NEMA will:

• Monitor import declarations
• Conduct regular environmental audits
• Inspect markets and pollution hotspot 

Penalties for non-compliance include:

1. Fines between KES 2 million and 4 million
2. Up to four years of imprisonment

 NEMA is clearly serious with its business and is intent on attaining everyone’s vision of better environment.

Strategic Implications for Industry

EPR is more than compliance—it is strategic positioning. Businesses that adapt now will:

1.Align with global circular economy trends.

2.Build consumer trust through responsible branding and showing good will to the community.

3.Strengthen long-term ESG performance.

 Why It Matters to the Public

For the average citizen, the EPR law may seem like some distant, irrelevant, corporate regulation. But oh, it addresses many of the environmental burdens communities have endured for decades—overflowing waste, plastic-choked rivers, toxic air, and frequent disease outbreaks.

Shifting the Burden Upstream

Under this new law, responsibility begins with producers. This change could mean

• Cleaner streets and neighborhoods
• Improved health and sanitation
• Safer, formal employment opportunities in waste management
• Citizens will no longer be the default custodians of corporate waste. 

A Shared Path Forward

This regulation is not merely about trash—it is about trust, transparency, and responsibility. It redefines Kenya’s relationship with production, consumption, and environmental stewardship.

Whether you’re a business executive planning your compliance strategy, or a citizen concerned about the state of your local environment, the message is clear:

We all have a role—but finally, those who profit from products must lead in cleaning them up.

This is not just another obsolete environmental policy. This could mean a new dawn in the environment sector just like the plastic paper ban back in 2017 which, I think, was the revolutionary moment in Kenya’s fight for a better environment.