More than half of private companies that have been reported for money laundering are in the construction sector, according to a government report that sheds fresh light on the prevalence of shady dealings in the cash-intensive sector.

The National Risk Assessment On Money Laundering and Terrorism Financing of Legal Persons and Legal Arrangements – Kenya report the Business Registration Service (BRS) publishes shows 10,733 registered private companies were reported for money laundering in 2022.

More than half (56.5 percent) of the private firms that were reported for money laundering were involved in the construction sector, signalling the rapidly growing sector as a preferred conduit.

This was followed by real estate (8.07 percent), manufacturing (7.17 percent), money transfer agents (5.83 percent), consultancy (4.48 percent), textiles (4.04 percent) and retailers (3.14 percent).

“The legal structures that had been abused for money laundering purposes were mostly involved in construction, real estate, manufacturing and financial services,” said the report.

The construction sector is one of the fastest growing in Kenya and contributed 7.1 percent of the GDP in 2022, Kenya National Bureau of Statistics shows.

This has been fuelled by major projects in recent years like the Nairobi Expressway, the Standard Gauge Railway, the Lamu Port, construction and rehabilitation of roads as well as thousands of commercial and residential buildings.

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