This does not only affect
FMCGs, it affects Services and
Governments Too
You may think that the bandit
economy only affects the fast moving
consumer goods only. It also affects
durables like we saw in the case
where a Cabinet Secretary’s car was
registered as a lorry attracting low
taxes when it was actually a Range
Rover SUV.
In services we have illegal
connections for water, cable TV,
electricity and many other services.
For electricity there is also theft of
transformer oil that is known for its
potency in cooking some delicacies
without losing its color.
This results to blackouts that are
costly to the economy in terms of
lost productivity, security breaches,
unwanted pregnancies and deaths in
hospitals.
We also have employees of service
industries moonlighting to offer their
‘‘ We also have
employees of
service industries
moonlighting to offer
their kind of services
to the market at a
lower charge.’’
I have explained earlier that one of the
strategies being used is to re-brand
so that the product has more security
features that are harder to copy.
kind of services to the market at a
lower charge.
You can also choose our upcoming
Power Workshop on The Bandit
Economy in Naivasha this August
to sharpen your knowledge about
the high costs of the menace.
The counties and central government
also lose a lot of taxes to corruption
and evasion by bandits and own staff.
What to do: If You Stay Stagnant
you Get Shot
As the military and Strategy saying
goes if you stay stagnant you get shot.
You should always do something about
the situation at hand and here even
doing nothing is something.
There is also the use of ICT
platforms and promotional codes
that consumers can use to win
raffles or to identify genuine
products. Creating consumer
awareness about product safety and
features is recommended.
Boniface Ngahu is a seasoned
marketing research expert and runs the
Talking Point column in Marketing
Africa magazine. He is the Marketing
Director of SBO Research. You can
commune with him on this or related
matters via email at: BNgahu@
sboresearch.co.ke, or follow him on
Twitter @bngahu