Phrynobatrachus pakenhami is a frog species in the true frog subfamily Petropedetinae. This is sometimes treated as an independent family Petropedetidae, in which case the genus Phrynobatrachus is occasionally placed in a distinct family Phrynobatrachidae. Despite the uncertainties surrounding its systematics, the taxonomy of P. pakenhami remains unchanged since this species was first described almost 70 years ago.