Market pulse · Kenya · updated September 2026
The Kenyan pharmaceutical market: about USD 1.4 billion a year at retail value.
Roughly 60% of that value moves through public procurement and 40% through private pharmacies and hospitals. About 70% of medicines are imported.
Published third-party estimates at import or ex-factory prices (before distribution and pharmacy margins) sit between USD 0.8 and 1.1 billion; the difference comes from the prices used, not the size of the market. Sources and method.
Market figures
35
Licensed pharmaceutical manufacturers
Pharmexcil, Kenya regulatory and market profile
300+
Registered importers and distributors
Pharmexcil, Kenya regulatory and market profile
KES 76 bn
Annual medicine import bill
People Daily, citing industry data
6% a year
Expected market growth to 2030
TechSci Research, Kenya Pharmaceutical Market
26%
People with any health insurance
Kenya Demographic and Health Survey 2022 (KNBS)
22.8%
Out-of-pocket share of health spending
WHO Global Health Expenditure Database, 2021
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