Plastic bags will no longer be in use from September,
Environment CS Judi Wakhungu has said.
These are carrier bags constructed with handles and with or without gussets, or
flat bags without handles and with or without gussets.
"The ministry has banned the use, manufacture and importation of all plastic bags used for commercial and household packaging,"
Wakhungu said
in a gazette notice dated February 27.
Last year, a
bill sponsored by Umoja MCA Njoroge Maina aimed at encouraging the re-use of paper bags or the use of alternatives to reduce plastic waste generation.
The bill tabled in Nairobi proposed fines for shoppers found carrying polythene bags in the city.
This meant that supermarket outlets would not be allowed to use polythene bags to package goods for customers.
According to the bill, a retailer who fails to charge customers for the bags could be jailed for up to 12 months or fined up to Sh3 million, or both.
In 2014, the bill had required them to remit the proceeds to City Hall for use in environmental management but the current bill has struck out that provision.
Laws crafted earlier had also set a minimum size and thickness of the plastic bags.
A 2007 attempt at cleaning up the country by banning the manufacture and import of bags widely failed.
Rwanda is the only country in the region which has effectively banned use of plastic
bags.