Kenya has emerged as the fastest-growing internet advertising market globally, according to PwC’s Africa Entertainment & Media Outlook 2025–2029, which forecasts a 16% compound annual growth rate in digital ad spend through 2029, almost twice the global average of 8.4%.
The report positions Kenya as a regional digital leader, crediting its mobile-first economy, rising internet penetration and rapid migration of ad budgets from legacy media to digital platforms.
PwC attributes the acceleration to increased smartphone usage, cheaper mobile data, and the mainstream adoption of data-driven marketing. Brands are reallocating spend from radio and print to platforms such as Google, Meta, TikTok, and YouTube, while programmatic buying and AI-based tools gain traction across both corporates and SMEs.
Video is set to be the fastest-expanding segment, with a projected 22.3% annual growth rate to 2029, followed by social media and paid search, supported by high user engagement and rising e-commerce adoption. PwC notes this forms part of a broader structural shift in Africa’s media markets, where digital revenue streams are overtaking traditional channels.
Kenya’s momentum is reinforced by deep mobile integration in daily commerce, mobile subscriptions exceed the population, and services like M-Pesa are embedded across transactions, creating a data-rich environment for targeted advertising and conversion-driven campaigns.
PwC projects the country’s entertainment and media market to reach $5.15 billion by 2029 at a 5.2% CAGR, with internet advertising as the primary driver. Kenya is expected to outpace Nigeria (12.3%) and South Africa (7.9%) in digital ad growth over the same period, with digital projected to command nearly 64% of total ad spend by 2029.
The report says continued 5G rollout and maturing AI-led ad technologies will deepen the shift to digital-first marketing, reinforcing Kenya’s status as a continental innovation hub with a structurally expanding digital economy.
