By Sharon Atieno
The Coalition for Health Research and Development (CHReaD) has cautioned against Kenya’s declining investment in health research, development, and innovation.
According to the Coalition, made up of 38 organizations working in health research and development, if this trend persists, it will threaten a critical shortage of locally produced lifesaving medical solutions and jeopardize the country’s capacity to respond to emerging health threats.
“While the overall health sector funding in the 2025/26 budget has increased from KSh127 billion in 2024/25 to 138.1 billion, allocations for health research remain alarmingly inadequate,” the Coalition said in a press statement.
“The Kenya Medical Research Institute (KEMRI) received only about KSh 2.7 billion for recurrent costs and a mere KSh 40 million for laboratory upgrades, a drastic reduction from the KSh 2.5 billion recurrent and KSh 537 million allocated in 2024/25. This leaves little room to sustain or launch critical research initiatives.”
Besides, the National Research Fund (NRF), the body mandated to finance Kenya’s
research and innovation, received no allocation whatsoever, compared to KSh218.7million in the 2024/25 budget.
Further, the Coalition notes that the withdrawal of traditional international donors such as USAID has exacerbated the crisis, resulting in the loss of over $220 million in funding for health research, development and innovation.
“Clinical trials are stalling, surveillance systems weakened, and we risk losing our top scientists to brain drain. Kenya’s ability to diagnose, treat, and respond effectively to public health threats will deteriorate,” CHReaD stated, adding that health research is not a cost; it is a high-return investment with proven economic benefits.
“Every shilling invested in Kenya health research and development yields KSh 2.40
in short-term returns and KSh 4.72 in long-term gains. Failure to invest now represents both a missed economic opportunity and a critical threat to future health security and pandemic preparedness.”
In this regard, CHReaD has called for action in three areas. The first area is Emergency Budget Amendment, calling on Parliament to urgently allocate targeted research funds
to KEMRI and NRF in the upcoming supplementary budget. These should cover operational
research, clinical trial support, and innovation grants.
The other area is the implementation of the Social Health Authority (SHA) Act Reform. Proposed by KEMRI, the amendment of the Act calls for allocating 0.1% of the Authority’s monthly collections to fund research institutions to safeguard them from declining donor support, which they heavily rely on.
Additionally, the Coalition calls for supporting market access and commercialization. This includes the government prioritizing procurement of locally developed innovations and reviewing the Science, Technology, and Innovation (STI) Act, 2013 to empower KEMRI, the NRF and other institutions to commercialize research and generate sustainable revenue.
