The Kenya Medical and Research Institute(KEMRI) has penned a Ksh15 billion Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Wellcome, a United Kingdom-based charitable foundation, and the University of Oxford to reinforce the country's health research and training capacity.
According to KEMRI, in a statement on Friday, March 26, the MOU was signed at the Wellcome headquarters in London by KEMRI's Acting Director General and CEO, Elijah Songok, Chief Executive Officer of Wellcome John-Arne Røttingen, and Prof. Gavin Screaton, who is the Head of Medical Sciences at Oxford’s Nuffield Department.
Under the partnership, the University of Oxford and Wellcome Trust will support health research activities in the country in the next seven years.
For over three decades, KEMRI has been working closely with the institutions, a synergy that has birthed major scientific breakthroughs and research dedicated to fighting malaria, pneumonia, meningitis, HIV, malnutrition, testing of 2 Malaria vaccines, and the development and testing of the Rift Valley Vaccine, among others.
Furthermore, the collaboration has facilitated the development and testing of critical vaccines, which include two malaria vaccines and the Rift Valley Fever vaccines.
"The agreement was signed on Thursday evening, March 27, 2025, at the Wellcome headquarters in London, marking a significant boost for medical research and training in Kenya," the statement read.
"Under the partnership, Wellcome and the University of Oxford will support research activities with a funding commitment of up to GBP 91 million (KES 15 billion) over the next seven years," it added.
Welcoming the move, Songok revealed that the KEMRI-Wellcome-Oxford Programme has been contributing to over 30 percent of KEMRI’s research output over the years.
Songok further affirmed that the move aims at propelling Kenya to its ultimate goal of attaining Universal Health Coverage(UHC).
“The Programme remains one of KEMRI’s flagship research and training initiatives, continuously making impactful contributions to health research and capacity building,” he stated.
“As we embark on this renewed journey with Wellcome and the University of Oxford, we are reaffirming our commitment to cutting-edge research and innovative solutions that address some of the most pressing health challenges of our time," he added.
John-Arne and Screaton stressed that the partnership is part of efforts to address urgent global health challenges such as climate change, mental health, and infectious, in addition to fostering equitable research collaboration globally.
