Cannabis — Kenya

Cannabis is illegal in Kenya. Simply having it is a criminal offence under section 3 of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (Control) Act (Cap. 245). If you satisfy the court that the cannabis was intended solely for your own consumption the maximum is five years' imprisonment or a fine of up to one hundred thousand shillings, but that is something you must prove after arrest, not a personal-use allowance. Using it is a separate offence with a higher minimum penalty, the trafficking section is worded to cover mere possession with far heavier penalties banded by weight, and police may arrest without a warrant. Two further subsections reach people holding nothing at all: under section 5(1)(c) an owner, occupier or person concerned in the management of premises who permits them to be used for smoking or otherwise using a narcotic drug faces a fine of not less than twenty million shillings or not less than ten years in prison, a minimum term that is double the maximum for holding cannabis yourself; and under section 5(1)(b) merely being found, without lawful and reasonable excuse, in a house, room or place to which people resort to use drugs is itself an offence.

Possession of any narcotic drug is an offence under section 3(1) of Cap. 245. Where the person satisfies the court the cannabis was solely for personal consumption, section 3(2)(a) provides imprisonment of not more than five years or a fine of not more than one hundred thousand shillings, and the court may additionally order a treatment or rehabilitation programme of not less than six months (section 3(2)(c)). Smoking, inhaling or otherwise using a narcotic drug is a separate offence under section 5(1)(a), carrying a fine of not less than two hundred and fifty thousand shillings or imprisonment of not less than five years, or both. Being found without lawful and reasonable excuse in a place to which persons resort to use drugs carries the same penalty under section 5(1)(b). Permitting premises you own, occupy or manage to be used for drug use is punished far more heavily under section 5(1)(c): a fine of not less than twenty million shillings or imprisonment of not less than ten years, or both. Permitting premises to be used for cultivation carries, under section 6(b), a fine of two hundred and fifty thousand shillings or three times the market value of the plant, whichever is greater, or up to twenty years, or both. Section 4 on trafficking is worded to cover a person who has a narcotic drug in his or her possession, with penalties banded by quantity: 1 to 100 grams, not less than thirty million shillings or thirty years; more than 100 grams, not less than fifty million shillings or three times market value, whichever is greater, or fifty years. Police may arrest without a warrant (section 80).

Verified Sep 9, 2026