Kenya lacks 85% of malaria funding

Kenya is facing a shortfall of 15 billion Kenyan shillings in funding for its malaria-control programme, Health Minister Aden Duale said on Thursday during a high-level dialogue on eliminating the disease in Gaborone, Botswana. The country has 2.66 billion shillings of the 17.7 billion needed to implement its annual strategy, a shortfall of 85%, according to the minister, quoted by Capital FM.

Aden Duale, who was representing President William Ruto, called on African governments to increase domestic funding and reduce their dependence on foreign donors. He warned that a decline in international funding could undermine progress made, as Kenya has recorded a 34% fall in confirmed cases, from 5.54 million in 2023 to 3.64 million in the 12 months ending in September 2026.

The incidence of malaria among children under five has also fallen, from 194 to 119 cases per 1,000, according to Aden Duale. The government wants to integrate malaria interventions into primary healthcare, community services and digital disease surveillance as part of its universal health coverage reforms.

The minister also called for increased African production of medicines, mosquito nets and other health products. Kenya’s local manufacturing strategy aims for domestic production equivalent to 50% of essential health products; trials of spatial repellents made in Kenya showed an approximately 33% reduction in infections, he said.