The Postal Corporation of Kenya (PCK) plans to increase private letter box and bag rental fees by up to 12.4 percent, citing rising operating costs.
A disclosure by the Communications Authority of Kenya (CA) shows that PCK targets to revise the individual letter box annual rental fees by 10 percent to Sh2,200 from the current Sh2,000. The State agency, also known as Posta, wants to raise corporate box rates by 5.8 percent to Sh10,000 from the current Sh9,450.
Special corporate customers would also see their fees go up 12.4 percent from Sh6,225 to Sh7,000, if the proposal is approved, while for learning and religious institutions, rental charges would increase 3.6 percent to Sh8,000 from Sh7,725.
At the same time, key deposit and lock replacement fees have sharper adjustments, with both proposed to rise to Sh1,000. This is a 78.6 percent and 69.2 percent increase from the current Sh560 and Sh650, respectively.
Posta said the existing Sh1,320 fee for sub-post offices would be “harmonised,” without specifying the new rate. Posta has not disclosed when it seeks to implement the price increases. The corporation did not respond to Business Daily’s request for comment.
“PCK … has applied to CA for approval to review their private letter box/bag rental fees owing to the increased costs associated with service delivery,” CA said.
“Any person or local authority, company or body of persons devious of making any representation on or objection to the proposed revision must do so vide a letter addressed to the Director General, Communications Authority of Kenya … on or before expiry of thirty (30) days from the date of publication of this notice and must forward to PCK a copy of the representation or objection.”
Posta’s use has been declining locally in recent years due to the rise of digital communication and competition from private courier services, which have tapped into the parcel delivery and e-commerce logistics market. Upcountry matatu Saccos have also begun offering parcel delivery, acting as informal couriers alongside their commuter services.
CA data shows that the State corporation’s domestic letter traffic declined by 17.2 percent from 174,057 in June 2025 to 144,087 in September 2025. Parcels sent domestically fell by 19.8 percent from 141,932 to 113,874 during the same period.
This is in contrast to private courier services, which over the three months, saw letters and parcels sent locally grow 14.6 percent and 2.2 percent, respectively.
However, Posta’s international outgoing parcels rose by 18.2 percent, which CA attributed to PCK’s automation to comply with its card issuance requirements.
To arrest the declining numbers, the government plans to spend Sh3.1 billion by 2027 on improving the local postal and courier network by setting up ‘citizen service centres’ to serve as consolidation points, according to the regulator’s 2023-2027 Universal Service Fund (USF) strategy.
The State also seeks to spur e-commerce growth in rural areas by improving last-mile efficiency with the multi-billion-shilling investment.
