Nairobi, March 21 -- The number of new motorcycle purchases has slumped to the lowest level since 2008, as high taxes and skyrocketing fuel prices cut demand for the two-wheelers for private and business use.

Fresh data from the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (KNBS) reveals that new motorcycles registered last year dropped by 52.6 per cent to 62,338, down from 113,513 in 2022.

This follows a rise in several levies last year, including value-added tax on petroleum products that put fuel out of reach of some transporters among them boda boda riders who found the business increasingly less profitable.

New purchases of motorcycles, which are a common means of transport in Kenya, had been consistently rising yearly since the government...