By A recent ruling by the High Court in Nairobi has raised pressing questions across the region: why has Kenya suspended its health cooperation framework with the United States, while Uganda continues to advance a similar arrangement?
On December 10, 2025, Justice Bahati Mwamuye issued a conservatory order stopping the Kenyan Government from implementing sections of its Health Cooperation Framework with the United States that involve the transfer or sharing of medical, epidemiological, or sensitive personal data. The decision followed a petition by the Consumers Federation of Kenya (COFEK), which argued that aspects of the agreement could compromise constitutional privacy protections.
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The court directed that Kenyan authorities and their agents refrain from operationalizing any part of the agreement that permits data transfer until the petition is heard in full in early 2026. The Respondents including the State Law Office and the Senate were further ordered to file their submissions before mid-January 2026. A mention date has been set for February 12, 2026.
The Kenyan suspension now casts attention on Uganda, which has already signed a Health Cooperation Memorandum of Understanding with the United States. Like Kenya’s arrangement, Uganda’s MoU focuses on strengthening public health collaboration, emergency response, surveillance, training, and technical support. It also provides for cooperation in health information systems and sharing of relevant data for public health purposes.
Whereas Kenya’s deal has been halted pending judicial review, Uganda’s MoU remains in effect, with no current legal challenge.
The contrast has generated a regional debate: why has one East African country halted implementation while another proceeds? In Kenya, the suspension stems directly from a court order—not from policy reconsideration after a petitioner argued that the data-transfer clauses required deeper scrutiny. In Uganda’s case, no petition has been filed to challenge the MoU’s provisions, and no court has issued a directive similar to Kenya’s.
As Kenya prepares for inter-partes hearings in January 2026, the future of its cooperation framework remains uncertain. Uganda’s MoU, meanwhile, continues to stand, even as Kenya’s judicial intervention raises broader regional questions about health-data governance, bilateral agreements, and procedural oversight.
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