How do commodity chains stabilize? Governing Kenya’s sand trade

• Sand commodity chains are contested but surprisingly durable. • Considering ill-regulation of sand extraction in Kenya, informal governance mechanisms account for predictability. • The paper maps main actors, value creation and norms and rules governing the chain. • Social capital, wealth, bottom-up labour organization and regulatory loopholes sustain a market that is both ordered and unruly. The organization of sand extraction and trade in Kenya significantly impacts the nation's economic development and the livelihoods of tens of thousands of Kenyans. This article aims to contribute to the emerging discussion on how sand commodity chains are negotiated and governed in contexts with absent or ineffective regulation. The sand trade is characterized by a range of informal yet effective rules and institutions, although these rules may be subject to the influence of economic and political dynamics elsewhere. Based on field research at trade routes along three prominent sand extraction sites—Kajiado, Kilifi, and Kedong—we identify the key actors, map the main value streams, and examine the rules and norms underpinning the Kenyan sand economy. Drawing on the scholarship on resource governance, this paper identifies pivotal mechanisms that regulate access to benefits in sand extraction and transportation. Social status, such as that of elders or brokers, sophisticated bottom-up labor organization, and access to wealth provide important impetus for making the sand trade in Kenya a contested yet surprisingly predictable venture. The resilience of the trade hinges on this structured informality, where every actor plays a part in sustaining a market that remains simultaneously regulated and unruly