CS Duale defends US-backed Laikipia health facility following public outcry

A version of this article appeared on Citizen Digital.

The national government has formally defended ongoing infrastructure investments in Ebola preparedness, confirming that a health security and isolation facility in Laikipia County will proceed despite mounting public opposition and political resistance. 

Health Cabinet Secretary (CS) Aden Duale dismissed concerns surrounding the project, stating that the installation is critical to protecting the country from cross-border infectious diseases, which do not respect national boundaries. 

The statement follows a temporary conservatory order issued by Justice Patricia Nyaundi at the Milimani High Court, which barred the project from continuing after the Katiba Institute filed a legal challenge. 

In total, four separate cases have been filed against the project by various entities, including the Law Society of Kenya (LSK), amid public anxiety that the facility would be used exclusively to treat foreign nationals. 

Addressing the controversy, CS Duale clarified that the facility is being built at a military installation under the supervision of the Kenya Defence Forces (KDF), which possesses a robust medical wing. 

The project is part of a broader network of 11 or 12 regional quarantine, isolation, and treatment centres being established across the country, including specialised units at Kenyatta National Hospital (KNH). 

Similar operational units have been designated at the Kenya National Police Hospital and Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital (MTRH), alongside emergency sites across 10 high-risk border counties. 

According to the Ministry of Health (MOH), the United States government has committed $1.7 billion to support Kenya's national disease surveillance, laboratory diagnostics, medical supply chains, and emergency response infrastructure. 

CS Duale compared the project to the United Nations Office at Nairobi (UNON) regional health facility built at The Nairobi Hospital during the pandemic, which remains a valuable asset for local needs. 

Local political figures have challenged the deployment, with People’s Liberation Party leader Martha Karua accusing the government of prioritising external arrangements while local healthcare infrastructure suffers from resource gaps. 

Health officials maintain that the infrastructure will provide long-term laboratory upgrades, enhanced disease surveillance, and workforce readiness that extend far beyond the immediate threat of the regional Ebola outbreak.