Health Cabinet Secretary Aden Duale has announced plans to establish a modern 200-bed National Infectious Diseases Centre as Kenya steps up efforts to strengthen its readiness against Ebola and other emerging disease threats.
The planned facility will bring together diagnosis, treatment, isolation, disease surveillance, research and training under one roof, giving the country greater capacity to prevent, detect and respond to infectious disease outbreaks while supporting the management of communicable illnesses such as HIV and tuberculosis.
Duale announced the project on August 4, 2026, during a joint inspection of the Kenya National Public Health Institute (KNPHI) and the Infectious Diseases Unit at Kenyatta National Hospital alongside United States Chargé d’Affaires to Kenya Susan M. Burns.
The visit focused on assessing Kenya's ability to detect, prevent and respond to public health threats, with particular attention on Ebola preparedness. It also reviewed ongoing investments aimed at strengthening the country's public health systems and supporting KNPHI's growth into a world-class public health institution.
According to the Cabinet Secretary, the government is investing in laboratories, disease surveillance systems and rapid response capacity to improve the country's public health security and ensure it is better prepared for future outbreaks.
He said the proposed National Infectious Diseases Centre will strengthen Kenya's response to disease outbreaks while improving the management of infectious diseases, including HIV and tuberculosis. The facility is also expected to position Kenya as a regional centre of excellence in disease prevention, preparedness and emergency response.
At KNPHI, the delegation reviewed several projects supported by the United States Government that are helping improve disease surveillance and laboratory services across the country. These include the renovation of the National Virology Laboratory, construction of a Biosafety Level 3 Central Laboratory, deployment of two mobile laboratories, improvement of laboratory information management systems, laboratory capacity mapping, and continued support for HIV and tuberculosis reference testing services.
The Ministry of Health said the investments have strengthened laboratory diagnosis, disease surveillance and outbreak response across the country.
KNPHI currently hosts four national reference laboratories that support surveillance and rapid diagnosis of priority diseases, including HIV, tuberculosis and other emerging public health threats.
The ministry noted that the two mobile laboratories have improved frontline outbreak response by reducing laboratory turnaround time from several days to between six and eight hours.
The laboratories have so far tested 173 Ebola samples, with all returning negative results. The samples include 38 collected from Busia and 35 from Lwakhakha, allowing health authorities to take timely public health action while strengthening national health security.
The delegation also toured the eight-bed Infectious Diseases Unit at Kenyatta National Hospital, which forms part of Kenya's preparedness system for highly infectious diseases.
The unit has handled 58 suspected Ebola cases, with all laboratory tests returning negative. It is supported by 38 healthcare workers who have received specialised training in the management of highly infectious diseases.
Duale said continued investment in KNPHI, laboratory systems and infectious disease preparedness remains important in building a resilient health system that can prevent, detect and respond quickly to public health emergencies while protecting the health of all Kenyans.
The inspection was attended by Medical Services Principal Secretary Dr Ouma Oluga, Public Health and Professional Standards Principal Secretary Mary Muthoni, KNPHI Board Chairperson Paul Kariuki, U.S. CDC Kenya Country Director Jennifer Galbraith, DPH-K Chairperson Brian Rettman, Kenyatta National Hospital Chief Executive Officer Dr Richard Lesiyampe, as well as officials from the Ministry of Health and the United States Government.