Maize Prices Ease Across East Africa, But Kenya Still Tops The Price
Maize prices are coming down across East Africa, offering some breathing room to households and traders after months of tight supply, though Kenya remains the priciest place in the region to buy the staple grain.
New market data from the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA) shows average maize prices fell in all five countries tracked between May and June 2026, a sign that harvests and market supply are catching up with demand.
The figures track the average cost of a metric ton of 1,000 kilograms of maize. Kenya’s prices dipped only slightly, from $438 a ton in May to $433 in June.
That’s still comfortably the highest price tag in the region. Analysts point to a mix of factors keeping Kenyan maize expensive, production shortfalls, transport costs, and demand pressures that don’t apply as heavily elsewhere.
Uganda came in second, with prices slipping from $433 to $426 over the same period, a modest dip that suggests the market there has largely stabilized rather than swung sharply in either direction.
Rwanda saw a similar pattern, with prices easing from $428 to $421 a ton. Grain availability appears to be improving, though prices are still on the higher end compared to Tanzania and Ethiopia.
Tanzania’s market moved more decisively. Prices dropped from $285 to $248 a ton, making it one of the cheapest places to buy maize in East Africa right now, good news for consumers, and likely a reflection of a stronger harvest season.
The biggest mover, by far, was Ethiopia. Prices there fell from $384 to $254 a ton, a drop of well over $100 in a single month, the sharpest decline anywhere in the region. That kind of swing points to a significant boost in supply reaching the market.
Taken together, the numbers paint a fairly encouraging picture: maize is getting cheaper almost everywhere in East Africa.
But the gap between countries is still wide, and Kenya’s position at the top of the price table is a reminder that not everyone is feeling the relief equally. Differences in harvests, production costs, infrastructure and cross-border trade continue to shape who pays what for their maize.
With the grain remaining a dietary staple for millions across the region, how these trends hold up through the next harvest cycle, changing weather, and shifting trade policy will matter a great deal for food security in the months ahead.
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