Every health crisis of the past decade has delivered the same lesson: countries that invest in science are better equipped to withstand shocks, respond quickly and recover stronger. COVID 19 exposed the fragility of under resourced health systems. Antimicrobial resistance continues to rise. Ebola and other emerging threats still test national preparedness. Research is not a luxury in such a world; it is a strategic asset.
That is the lens through which Kenya’s FY 2026/27 budget should be read. And through that lens, the budget tells a story of meaningful progress but also of ambition that remains underfunded. There are important gains worth recognizing. Funding for Research, Science, Technology and Innovation increased from Ksh 942.9 million to Ksh 1.26 billion. KEMRI’s allocation rose from Ksh 2.69 billion to Ksh 3.07 billion, including targeted investments in laboratories in Kirinyaga and Kombewa and support for the Kenya Institute of Primate Research. The clearest signal comes from vaccines. Funding for the Vaccines Program increased from Ksh 4.63 billion to Ksh 6.36 billion, while Human Vaccine Production more than doubled, rising from Ksh 100 million to Ksh 244 million.
These are not symbolic allocations. They reflect a growing recognition that scientific capability,
local manufacturing and health security are interconnected.
The challenge lies beneath the headline figures. Much of the new spending supports infrastructure, equipment and operations rather than the research ecosystem that gives those investments value. Laboratories without researchers are buildings. Equipment without funded projects is inventory. Yet allocations for health personnel training fell from Ksh 403 million to Ksh 242 million, and there is little evidence of a corresponding strategy to expand the pipeline of researchers, postdoctoral scientists, clinician researchers and innovation leaders needed to sustain the system. Infrastructure is growing faster than the workforce required to use it.
Universities face a similar constraint. While higher education funding has increased through scholarships and student loans, dedicated support for health research grants, early career researchers, academic industry partnerships and innovation translation remains difficult to identify. Institutions expected to generate new knowledge continue to struggle to transform
research into products, policies and public value.
The funding gap becomes even more apparent when measured against Kenya’s own commitments. The country’s Science, Technology and Innovation framework commits Kenya to investing 2 percent of GDP in research and development. Based on the current size of the economy, meeting that target would require annual investment of approximately KSh 380 billion. Current allocations, however, fall short by more than KSh 200 billion each year, highlighting the significant disconnect between the country’s stated ambition and its actual investment in science and research.
Health research tells a similar story. The Health Act, 2017 requires that at least 30 percent of National Research Fund allocations support health R&D. Yet available evidence shows that between 2013 and 2018, health received no more than 25 percent of NRF funding, while actual allocations for health research were estimated to be 83 percent below government commitments. The policy direction exists. The financing has yet to catch up.
Two further signals are cause for concern. First, the National Research Fund, the country’s principal mechanism for competitive research financing, has no clearly identifiable allocation in the published budget estimates. Funding that cannot be clearly seen is difficult to defend, track or expand. Second, the Finance Bill 2026 proposes shifting pharmaceutical manufacturing inputs from zero rated to VAT exempt status. While medicines may remain VAT free for consumers, manufacturers would lose the ability to reclaim VAT on production inputs, increasing production costs at precisely the moment Kenya seeks to strengthen domestic
pharmaceutical manufacturing.
None of this diminishes the progress reflected in the budget. Rather, it clarifies what must come next. Kenya has begun investing in the foundations of a stronger scientific ecosystem. The next step is to invest in the people, projects and institutions that transform infrastructure into impact. That means strengthening competitive research funding, providing the National Research Fund with a visible and growing allocation, supporting researchers across the career pipeline and establishing a credible roadmap toward the country’s R&D investment targets.
Science is a public good. It improves health, strengthens economies, builds resilience and expands national capability. Public goods require public investment. As CHReaD convenes Culture of Science 2026, financing African science will be at the centre of the conversation. The question is no longer whether Kenya values research. The question is whether the country is prepared to finance the future it has already committed to build.
