Health CS Duale launches probe into organ trafficking, Committee gets 3-month deadline

Health CS Aden Duale, during a press briefing at Afya House, Nairobi, introducing the committee on organ transplant. April 25, 2025. [Benard Orwongo, Standard]

Health Cabinet Secretary Aden Duale has inaugurated the investigative committee on organ trafficking in the country.

Speaking on Friday during the event at Afya House, Duale said the team will not only investigate allegations of organ trafficking at Mediheal Hospital but also in other health institutions across the country.

The team, he said, has three months to complete the task.

"The minister has given you up to three months for up to the 22nd of July, 2025, to complete your investigation and submit a detailed report with a concrete recommendation," he said.

"We are not interested in optics or bureaucratic posturing. We are interested in the truth, transparency, and transformative justice," he added.

According to a gazette notice issued by the Ministry on April 23, the committee will comprise 13 members, chaired by Prof. Elizabeth Bukusi and supported by a secretariat of three appointees.

This comes amid growing public scrutiny over the hospital's kidney transplant procedures following an expose by German media outlet Deutsche Welle (DW)

The shocking revelations have also shone a spotlight on frameworks governing organ transplant in Kenyan hospitals.

The hospital has, however, refuted the claims, maintaining that the accusations are untrue and that they have been adhering to the best international ethical and professional standards in their operations

"We are not involved in any organ trafficking or taking part in any syndicate, we are not involved in any criminal enterprise related to issues of kidney transplants," the facility's lawyer, Katwa Kigen, said on Wednesday.

The Bukusi-led taskforce, the CS directed, is expected to, among other issues, investigate specific allegations at Mediheal, including possible organ trafficking, coercion, unethical marketing, and violation of national and international laws on organ transplant

"We expect you (the committee) to review all the relevant documents, donor-recipient consent forms, and governance system for the past five years," Duale stated.

They are also required to review Kenya's policy, legal, and ethical frameworks governing our country's organ and tissue transplant services.

Within the 90 days, the committee has been mandated to conduct both physical audits of all the transplant facilities in the country.

He exuded confidence in the team, saying the "safety, dignity, and the right of donors, recipients, families, and healthcare providers must be safeguarded through this process."