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By Timon Otieno
Nairobi, Kenya: In Kenya, Bribery remains a stubborn obstacle for many citizens seeking public services, with the police, judiciary, and land offices ranking as the most corrupt, according to a new report by Transparency International Kenya (TI-Kenya).
The Kenya Bribery Index 2025, released on 17th July, reveals that nearly one in every four Kenyans faced a bribery situation in the past year. Of those, 70% admitted to paying a bribe—highlighting how entrenched corruption continues to be in everyday interactions with government agencies.
For the third year in a row, the National Police Service emerged as the most bribery-prone institution. The report shows that citizens had a 72.2% chance of being asked for a bribe during interactions with police officers. In fact, police accounted for nearly four out of every ten bribes paid nationally.
Meanwhile, the judiciary recorded the highest average bribe, with individuals paying around Ksh 18,800 to access justice. Land services followed closely, with an average bribe of Ksh 12,610 suggesting that both justice and land ownership may be increasingly out of reach for those who can’t afford to pay.
Sheila Masinde, the Executive Director of Transparency International Kenya, said that the report was based on five key indicators them being, namely aggregate index, impact of bribery, likelihood of bribery, average size of bribes paid by Kenyans to acquire services, and the shares of national bribes, locating where they went.
“Bribery remains a major obstacle for ordinary Kenyans, especially young people and small business owners,” she said. “It hits those least able to pay the hardest, and it eats away at public trust in institutions.”
Who’s Paying and Suffering the Most?
The survey, which covered 15 counties and over 1,000 respondents, found that young adults aged 25–34 were the most affected. This age group is actively seeking healthcare, education, employment, and business permits—services that frequently expose them to corruption.
Notably, self-employed Kenyans reported the highest number of bribes, accounting for 48% of all cases. Men were also more likely to pay bribes than women, likely due to more frequent contact with government offices and officials.
Why People Don’t Report
Even though bribery is widespread, only 17% of victims reported the incident. 25% of Kenyans cited fears of retaliation or a belief that “nothing would be done followed by 23% who fear intimidation from those involved in bribery.” This is despite the existence of bodies like the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) and the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions, which are legally mandated to investigate and prosecute corruption.
Hope in Digital Services
Not all public offices performed poorly. The report praised Huduma Centres, government service hubs, for their low bribery levels—just 9% of interactions involved a bribe. TI-Kenya recommends expanding digitized services across other high-risk areas such as police reporting, land transactions, and vehicle licensing.
Reducing face-to-face interactions, the report suggests, could dramatically shrink opportunities for bribery.
What Needs to Change
TI-Kenya has issued several recommendations, calling on both the government and civil society to act: The Executive should urgently implement long-delayed police reforms proposed in 2009 and 2022. The Judiciary needs to strengthen its internal oversight and speed up corruption-related cases. Parliament is urged to pass the Whistleblower Protection Bill and the Conflict of Interest Bill. County governments should adopt transparent service delivery platforms and allow for public feedback.
The Cost of Inaction
Unless meaningful action is taken, the report warns, bribery will continue to discriminate against the poor, violate fundamental rights, and weaken the rule of law.
As Kenya looks ahead, TI-Kenya stresses that the fight against bribery requires collective responsibility. Citizens, government bodies, and civil society all have a role to play in rooting out corruption from everyday life.
