Kidney transplant in Kenya
A kidney transplant can replace dialysis for some patients. Your nephrologist decides if a transplant is right for you. This page gives general information only.
The steps
- Talk to your nephrologist about a transplant.
- Find a possible living donor. Your transplant team explains the donor rules.
- Do the tests for the recipient and the donor (pre-transplant evaluation).
- Have the operation at a transplant centre.
- Take medicines for life to protect the new kidney. Go to every follow-up visit.
Where transplants happen in Kenya
Public reports name these hospitals as transplant centres. Ask each hospital about its current programme.
- Kenyatta National Hospital, Nairobi.
- Kenyatta University Teaching, Referral and Research Hospital, Kiambu (since May 2025).
- Aga Khan University Hospital, Nairobi.
- The Nairobi Hospital, Nairobi.
What SHA pays
| Item | SHA tariff |
|---|---|
| Pre-transplant evaluation | KES 150,000 a household a year |
| Transplant surgery (recipient) | KES 700,000 |
| Donor kidney removal | KES 168,000 |
| Medicines after a transplant | KES 200,000 a household a year |
KES1,218,000
the four items added together
The Health Cabinet Secretary said in January 2026 that SHA covers a transplant at KES 1.2 million.
Source: Legal Notice 146 of 2024. Last checked 6 October 2026.
Questions to ask the transplant team
- Am I a possible candidate for a transplant?
- Who can be my donor?
- Which tests do the donor and I need, and what do they cost?
- What does SHA pay, and what do I pay?
- How long is the wait, and how long is the stay in hospital?