The burden of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) is expected to escalate with the coalition of tobacco-control advocacy organisations citing years of poor underfunding. 

Seven organisations that form the Kenya Tobacco and Nicotine Tax Coalition (KTNTC) noted at the weekend that while NCDs are rapidly rising, Kenya’s public health response remains dangerously out of step with the scale of the threat. 

This is after an analysis of successive national budgets between 2021-22 and the recent 2025-26, which they say have not given NCDs the priority they deserve. 

Despite an increase of Ksh11 billion in the 2025-26 current year from Ksh127.1 billion in the 2024-25 Financial Year, the organisations are concerned that this amount does not specify what’s directly allocated for NCDs. 

“This underfunding, coupled with policy gaps, contributes to the rising number of deaths and illnesses caused by NCDs like cancer, diabetes, and cardiovascular diseases,” the organisations said, calling for increased budgetary allocations and a greater focus on NCDs within health financing discussions to address this growing crisis. 

The organisations include Kenya Tobacco Control and Health Promotion Alliance (KETCA), National Taxpayers’ Association (NTA), International Institute for Legislative Affairs (IILA), Consumer Information Network (CIN), Students Campaign Against Drugs (SCAD), Den of Hope, Kenya Network of Cancer Organisations (KENCO), and Non-Communicable Diseases Alliance Kenya (NCD Alliance Kenya). 

Limited funding for NCD programs hinders efforts to implement prevention and control strategies, whereas policy gaps and guidelines identified for NCDs management further exacerbate the problem.  

“NCDs are becoming increasingly common in Kenya, placing a significant strain on the healthcare system,” said the organisations. 

The KNTC Joint Budget Analysis lays bare the deepening crisis in Kenya’s response to NCDs, further revealing severe gaps in funding, policy execution, and service delivery for NCDs, diseases that are now responsible for more than four in every 10 deaths in the country.