Kenya’s health ministry announced on Wednesday that the country will begin rolling out lenacapavir, a novel HIV-prevention drug, in March across 15 priority counties. The drug, administered twice a year, has been shown to reduce the risk of HIV transmission by over 99.9 percent, although it functions chemically rather than as a vaccine by training the immune system.
Health Minister Aden Duale said the first batch of 21,000 doses arrived on Tuesday through a partnership with Gilead Sciences and the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, with an additional 12,000 continuation doses expected by April. “The first phase of implementation will begin early March, covering 15 counties,” he stated. The US government has pledged to supply a further 25,000 doses as part of ongoing support.
Kenya, with an HIV prevalence of 3.7 percent, is among nine African countries selected last year for lenacapavir introduction. Rollouts have already started in South Africa, Eswatini, and Zambia since December. Eastern and southern Africa together account for roughly 52 percent of the 40.8 million people living with HIV globally, according to UNAIDS 2024 data.
The rollout comes amid challenges from recent US aid cuts under former President Donald Trump, which impacted HIV/AIDS programmes across the continent. Kenya, however, secured a $2.5 billion health aid deal with the United States in December, with $1.6 billion earmarked over five years to combat HIV/AIDS, malaria, and prevent polio, while Kenya contributes $850 million and gradually assumes greater responsibility.
The initiative signals a major step forward for HIV prevention in the region, though the bilateral health agreement faces legal scrutiny from a Kenyan senator citing constitutional concerns.
