Time required to start a business in Kenya
Kenya: Time required to start a business was 23 days in 2019. ▼ Falling
Time required to start a business in Kenya, 2003–2019
Source: Doing Business project, World Bank (2025) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in days.
Analysis
Kenya recorded 23 days for time required to start a business in 2019.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 30.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, time required to start a business in Kenya peaked at 60 days in 2003 and was at its lowest, 22 days, in 2016.
Kenya ranks 41st of 188 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 17 years of available data.
Time required to start a business in Kenya, year by year
| Year | days | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2003 | 60 days | — |
| 2004 | 47 days | -21.7% |
| 2005 | 55 days | +17.0% |
| 2006 | 55 days | +0.0% |
| 2007 | 45 days | -18.2% |
| 2008 | 33 days | -26.7% |
| 2009 | 33 days | +0.0% |
| 2010 | 33 days | +0.0% |
| 2011 | 35 days | +6.1% |
| 2012 | 34 days | -2.9% |
| 2013 | 34 days | +0.0% |
| 2014 | 32 days | -5.9% |
| 2015 | 28 days | -12.5% |
| 2016 | 22 days | -21.4% |
| 2017 | 23 days | +4.5% |
| 2018 | 23 days | +0.0% |
| 2019 | 23 days | +0.0% |
Kenya compared with similar countries
- Kenya's 23 days is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 15 days, 1.5× the median. (47 countries reporting)
- Kenya's 23 days is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 14.25 days, 1.6× the median. (48 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 46.86 days | 33 days | 60 days | 7 |
| 2010s | 28.7 days | 22 days | 35 days | 10 |
Countries ranked near Kenya
More reference data data for Kenya
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.5379 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 12.22 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 14.55 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.377 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 14.55 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 1.8 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 1.1 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 58.05 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 68.95 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 2.05 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is time required to start a business in Kenya?
- Time required to start a business in Kenya was 23 days in 2019, according to Doing Business project, World Bank (2025) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest time required to start a business recorded in Kenya?
- The highest recorded value was 60 days in 2003.
- What is the lowest time required to start a business recorded in Kenya?
- The lowest recorded value was 22 days in 2016.
- How does Kenya rank for time required to start a business?
- Kenya ranks 41st out of 188 countries with data for 2019.
- Is time required to start a business rising or falling in Kenya?
- Over the last ten years it is down 30.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Kenya data come from?
- The figures come from Doing Business project, World Bank (2025) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Time required to start a business. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 17 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Number of calendar days needed to complete the procedures to legally operate a business.