(NAIROBI, KENYA) – The government’s move to clear contractor bills and restart road projects has helped drive up new vehicle sales in the country, as eight month uptake hit a new high.
Kenya Motor Industry Association (KMIA) industry data for August 2026, released yesterday, indicates new units sold in the year to August rose 27.3%, or by 2,435 units, to a total of 11,349 vehicles.
This is up compared to the 8,914 units sold during a similar period last year by the 11 main dealers of new vehicles with showrooms in major towns across the country, where some export to regional markets.
The Kenyan government cleared KES 177 billion ($1.37 billion / GBP 1.03 billion) in pending road contractor bills in February 2026, followed by an additional mobilisation of KES 139 billion ($1.07 billion / GBP 806 million) announced in August 2026 to settle subsequent certified works between 21st August and 28th August 2026.
The KES 139 billion ($1.07 billion / GBP 806 million) was mobilised via the Trade Development Bank and the Road Maintenance Levy Fund securitisation as the government moved to clear pending bills dating back to 2020.
The automotive market recorded 1,592 units sold in August 2026, with the highest monthly sales recorded in July at 1,912 units.
“Industry performance was primarily propelled by government fiscal intervention, specifically the mobilisation of KES 139 billion to clear contractor bills and restart road projects, which spurred heavy commercial vehicle demand,” KMIA said in its monthly report.
Heavy commercial vehicles mainly used in long haul freight transportation, construction and logistics networks, accounted for the lion’s share with dealers selling a total of 4,836 units, where Isuzu East Africa dominated with 3,301 trucks sold.
Prime movers, which include heavy duty tractor trucks and mechanical energy converters, accounted for 844 units, a significant number according to dealers where CFAO dominated the market.
Stable economic activities in transport, including public transport, agriculture, manufacturing, retail and other key sectors also drove uptake of new vehicles.
Single cabin and double cabin pickup trucks sold during the period totalled 1,934 and 1,119 units, respectively.
Minibuses of 21 to 40 seats totalled 644 units while large buses of over 40 seats sold were 223.
Isuzu East Africa maintained its market leadership with a 47.6% industry share, selling 5,405 units year to date.
Within the SUV D category, Isuzu achieved a 350% year to date volume surge, jumping from 20 to 90 units, recording a dominant 61.2% segment share.
“This performance of the mu X 7 seater SUV for instance was driven by local assembly price competitiveness, increased public sector procurement under the Buy Kenya Build Kenya policy, and an aggressive retail conversion strategy targeting buyers moving away from imported used alternatives,” Isuzu said.
CFAO came in second with 3,942 units sold year to August as it took 34.7% of the market share.
Other notable sales were recorded by Simba Corporation (865 units) and Tata Africa (533 units).
The industry is keen to drive growth in the country’s automotive industry mainly through policy and a phased reduction of used car imports.
According to Isuzu East Africa chairperson and managing director Rita Kavashe, the country’s assembly and production capacity utilisation is only at 34% of the installed capacity, meaning 60% capacity is still idle.