Unemployment and poverty have emerged as the most serious problems facing Kenyans, with 44% of respondents in a new national survey identifying the two issues as the country’s biggest challenge.
Another 25% pointed to inflation, high prices and high taxes, meaning economic concerns accounted for 69% of responses. The latest TIFA poll findings place corruption a distant third at 19%, followed by poor leadership at 7%.
The results suggest that even as headline economic indicators improve, jobs, incomes and household affordability remain the issues most strongly shaping public sentiment.
Key Overview
- Unemployment and poverty were cited by 44% of respondents as Kenya’s most serious problem.
- Inflation, high prices and high taxes were cited by another 25%.
- Combined economic concerns accounted for 69% of responses.
- Corruption ranked third at 19%, while poor leadership stood at 7%.
- The survey interviewed 2,048 adults across all 47 counties between June 13 and 22, 2026.
- The poll has an overall margin of error of ±2.18 percentage points.
- Only about 11% of surveyed households reported monthly incomes above KSh50,000.
Jobs and Poverty Return to the Top
The June findings mark a shift from May, when inflation, high prices and high taxes had temporarily become the most frequently cited concern after fuel prices rose sharply.
By June, unemployment and poverty had returned to 44%, matching the level recorded in November 2025, while concern about inflation and high prices fell to 25% from 47% in May. The change in public priorities suggests that short-term price shocks can move sentiment quickly, but job availability and household income remain deeper structural concerns.
The pattern also cuts across political differences. TIFA reported that 43% of both supporters and opponents of the Broad-Based Government identified unemployment and poverty as the country’s leading problem.
That consistency indicates that economic anxiety is not confined to one political constituency.
Household Finances Remain Under Pressure
The wider poll paints a difficult picture of household finances. Around 65% of respondents said their economic situation had worsened since the 2022 General Election, while only 12% reported an improvement.
Income levels also remain constrained. Only about 11% of surveyed households reported monthly earnings above KSh50,000, while just over half of Kenyan adults in the poll said they were working either full-time or part-time, including self-employment.
That employment measure fell to 58% from 63% in TIFA’s November 2025 survey. It should not be treated as Kenya’s official unemployment rate, but it provides useful evidence of how respondents describe their own participation in work and income-generating activity.
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Official Data Shows the Informal Economy Dominates Job Creation
The survey findings sit alongside an economy that is still creating jobs, but mostly outside formal wage employment.
Kenya generated 822,100 new jobs in 2025, with 716,800 — or 87.2% — created in the informal sector. Formal wage employment in the modern sector rose by 3.1% to about 3.3 million people.
The heavy concentration of job creation in informal work helps explain why employment growth does not necessarily translate into strong household income growth. Informal jobs can provide essential livelihoods, but they often come with lower or less predictable earnings and weaker social protection.
Kenya’s official poverty headcount also remains high at 39.8% based on the 2022 benchmark, although that figure predates the current survey and should not be read as a direct measurement of poverty conditions in 2026.
Inflation Has Eased but Remains a Major Concern
Kenya’s annual inflation rate stood at 6.6% in August 2026, showing that price pressures remain meaningful even after the sharp fuel-driven concerns recorded earlier in the year.
The TIFA results demonstrate an important distinction between inflation statistics and household experience. Even when inflation slows, households may still feel under pressure because the overall price level remains higher than in previous years while wages and earnings may not have risen at the same pace.
This helps explain why inflation, prices and taxes remained the second-most cited national concern even after their share fell sharply from May.
Economic Frustration Shapes Kenya’s National Outlook
Economic pressures are also influencing how Kenyans assess the country’s direction. A related TIFA finding showed that 76% believed Kenya was moving in the wrong direction, while only 14% thought it was moving in the right direction.
Among those who viewed the country’s direction negatively, 75% said their own economic situation had worsened since 2022. That relationship does not prove that economics alone determines political views, but it shows that household finances are closely connected to broader public confidence.
The challenge for policymakers is therefore increasingly about the quality of economic growth. Stronger GDP figures or lower inflation may improve the macroeconomic picture, but public sentiment is likely to remain weak unless growth produces better-paying jobs, stronger purchasing power and more visible improvements in household living standards.
With the 2027 General Election approaching, employment, poverty and the cost of living are positioned to remain central economic and political issues.
Sources: TIFA Research / The Star / Kenya National Bureau of Statistics / People Daily / Hivileo
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