The Anti Counterfeit Agency has announced that the country is losing nearly Sh70 billion annually to counterfeits.
The agency acting chief executive officer John Akoten said the economy of the country was at risk.
“The evidence we have indicates that the government is losing Sh19 billion in form of loss in taxes while manufacturers are losing Sh50 billion,” he said.
Mr Akoten said the agency is set to conduct a research to quantify the exact amount of counterfeit products in the country.
He said the research will help the agency, government agencies and the private sector to come up with a strategy on how to combat counterfeits.
He said they are collaborating with other government agencies to be able to deter the proliferation of illicit goods into the country.
“We need everybody in this war because the people who bring into the country these illicit goods are amongst us and we want such information to deal with this menace,” he said.
Speaking on Wednesday during a sensitisation training of government officers in Kisumu on counterfeiting, Akoten said the agency has beefed up surveillance within the country’s borders.
He announced that the agency has opened up an office in the lakeside city of Kisumu to be able to work closely with other government agencies to monitor counterfeit goods.
Kisumu County Commissioner John Elungata called on law enforcement officers to protect the public from consuming harmful products.
“It should remain our work as security agencies to help the public not to loss money in counterfeit goods or consume goods that are harmful to their lives,” he said.
Elungata further appealed to the public to desist from consuming counterfeit goods.