More than 20 farms in Kiambu County have lost 1,470 pigs to an outbreak of African Swine Fever since mid-May, and the government says the disease has now spread to six other counties.
The Ministry of Interior and National Administration in a statement on Saturday, September 12, said the Department of Veterinary Services has confirmed outbreaks in Tharaka-Nithi, Busia, Embu, Kakamega, Homa Bay and Migori counties, showing the threat extends well beyond Kiambu.
"In Tharaka-Nithi alone, 108 cases and 97 deaths were recorded between January 5 and 11, 2026," the department said in a statement.
African Swine Fever kills nearly every pig it infects and has no vaccine or cure, making it one of the most destructive livestock diseases in the world. The outbreak leaves farmers with dead herds, disrupts pork supply and threatens the wider livestock trade.
The government said it is stepping up surveillance and response, and working to control risks linked to livestock movement across borders with pastoralist communities.
Among the measures is the Pastoralism and Livestock Adaptation to Climate in Eastern Africa Programme (PLACE), a 47-million-euro initiative funded by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and the European Union to strengthen the resilience of pastoralist communities and their herds.
Kenya is also enforcing the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) Protocol on Transhumance, a framework for managing seasonal cross-border livestock movement.
Officials say unregulated movement makes disease outbreaks harder to contain.
The protocol covers three pastoral clusters. The Mandera Cluster links Kenya, Ethiopia and Somalia. The Karamoja Cluster links Kenya, Uganda, Ethiopia and South Sudan. The Mara-Serengeti Cluster links Kenya and Tanzania.
National and county authorities are working with cross-border community committees in each cluster to support safe livestock movement while strengthening disease controls, officials said.
The interventions include vaccination campaigns against Peste des Petits Ruminants and Contagious Bovine Pleuropneumonia, alongside deworming and pest-control measures.
Officials said work is also under way to strengthen Foot-and-Mouth Disease control in the Karamoja Cluster.
The government said the coordinated approach aims to protect livestock and livelihoods while allowing pastoralist communities to continue their seasonal migration and economic activities, and to cut the risk of uncontrolled cross-border movement spreading animal diseases further.
