A practical alliance for better health outcomes.

President of the Republic of Kenya and Commander-in-Chief of the Defence Forces.

Distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen,

1. Kenya and the United Kingdom (UK) share a longstanding strategic partnership anchored on five key pillars: Mutual prosperity, security, sustainable development, climate action, and people-to-people connections.
2. Today, our collaboration in alleviating health budget cuts across these pillars symbolises this partnership at its best.
3. The Kenya-UK Health Alliance is a flagship model of what our countries can achieve when we bring together expertise, resources, and shared values. Through the alliance, our two nations are delivering meaningful collaboration in research, clinical excellence, workforce development, and innovation, helping to strengthen our health systems and improve lives on both sides.
4. The alliance has already brought together renowned institutions in both countries. For example, the partnership between Kenyatta University Teaching, Referral and Research Hospital, the University of Manchester, and Christie NHS Foundation Trust has supported the deployment of Kenya's first mobile endoscopy unit to screen for oesophageal cancer. Other initiatives include building emergency medical training in Kisii County and programmes supporting breast cancer patients with life-saving counselling models.
5. I am also proud of the collaboration between King's College London and healthcare professionals in Kenya to establish a Diabetes Foot Centre of Excellence at the Coast General Teaching and Referral Hospital in Mombasa. This partnership has facilitated remote consultations, training via digital platforms, and knowledge exchange to address the specific challenges of diabetic foot care.
6. Such projects illustrate the Kenya-UK Alliance's role in advancing local capacity and delivering care that is tailored to our people's needs. Importantly, these collaborations are sustainable as they are based on building Kenyan expertise. For example, thanks to partnerships led by Alder Hey Children's Hospital, more than 340 paediatric heart surgeries have been performed in Kenya, with the latest 43 carried out entirely by Kenyan professionals.
7. Beyond clinical collaboration, our research partnerships are equally significant. The KEMRI-Wellcome Trust Research Programme demonstrates how shared research can strengthen national health responses. During the COVID-19 pandemic, this partnership delivered vital diagnostic support and evidence to guide our response. Additionally, the $25 million (GBP 18.2 million) SAMBAI Cancer Grand Challenge consortium is advancing our understanding of cancer genomics in Kenya, building local capacity and informing better care.
8. Such partnerships are also looking far into the future. The BRITE Kenya project, in collaboration with the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, will help establish local manufacturing capacity for vaccines, monoclonal antibodies, and antivenoms. This will not only reduce dependence on imports but also strengthen Kenya's role as a regional health hub, creating jobs and ensuring sustainable access to critical medicines.
9. We are also proud of our partnerships with universities such as Nottingham, Oxford, and King's College London. These collaborations support training, mentorship, and the development of critical skills to strengthen our medical education and workforce. This is essential to Kenya as we work to expand access to quality care across the country.
10. Ladies and gentlemen, Kenya is fully committed to achieving universal health coverage, a cornerstone of our Vision 2030, the 2014-2030 Health Policy and the Health Sector Strategic Plan 2023-2027. Through the Bottom-Up Economic Transformation Agenda, we are investing in a fully publicly financed primary healthcare system, the Emergency Care Fund, and the Social Health Insurance Fund that will cover all Kenyans.
11. We have operationalised the Social Health Insurance Fund, the Primary Health Fund, and the Emergency, Chronic, and Critical Illness Fund. This new financing system is projected to raise KSh133 billion annually, to ensure equitable access to care and accelerate our journey to universal health coverage.
12. Already, these efforts are yielding results. As I speak to you today, close to 25 million Kenyans have registered with Taifa Care, our umbrella universal health coverage programme, up from just about 8 million in October last year. Taifa Care is bringing on board even those at the margins of society, with about 1.8 million Kenyans in informal settlements already covered.
13. On behalf of the government and the people of Kenya, I express my sincere appreciation to all members of the Kenya-UK Health Alliance, to His Majesty's Government, and to all our partners for your steadfast support. This collaboration is central to our national development goals and to the health and well-being of our people.
14. I reaffirm Kenya's commitment to deepening our partnership with the UK in healthcare and look forward to welcoming you all to Kenya as we continue this shared journey of collaboration and progress.