IN SHORT: The motorbike taxi industry continues to provide an alternative source of income for many unemployed Kenyans. But they should be on the lookout for unscrupulous individuals posing as lenders and offering too-easy-to-be-true motorbike loans in order to scam them.
The Facebook page Empawa Sacco Motorbikes targets unemployed Kenyan youth with offers of motorbike loans.
The page claims that Kenyans can walk away with new motorbikes by paying a deposit and the balance in monthly instalments.
One of its adverts, posted on 6 May 2025, reads: “BRAND NEW LOAN MOTORBIKE AT DEPOSIT OF 10,000 WITH A DAILY PAYMENT OF 200 FOR 18 MONTHS Kindly call or WhatsApp 0784258359/0715250339 for more information.”
The page uses the name of Empawa Sacco, a savings and credit cooperative operating in Kenya, to promote the offers. Saccos are member-owned financial institutions.
The page has also advertised second-hand and electric motorbikes.
It has targeted its adverts on public Facebook groups with thousands of members attracting significant inquiries from interested users.
But how real are these offers? We checked.
Fake page and offers
Most reputable Saccos link their social media accounts to functional websites, allowing members and the public to access information about the nature of their activities. This page is not linked to a website, which is a red flag.
Africa Check noted that the photos used by the page to advertise are not branded – they lack key elements such as a logo and brand colours that would normally identify legitimate cooperatives like Empawa Sacco. This suggests that the photos might have been downloaded from elsewhere.
We also noted that the ads have been republished dozens of times across Facebook groups with thousands of members. This is a common tactic used by fake accounts and pages targeting unsuspecting users.
Empawa Sacco’s official Facebook page, Empawa Sacco Ltd, has over 17,000 followers and includes links to its official website. The contact phone number on the page does not match any of the numbers listed by the suspicious Facebook page in question.
The company has clearly stated that it only lends to valid members and does not ask them to make payments to mobile phone numbers.
The page offering motorbike loans is fake and should be ignored.
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