Last year, the leading causes of registered deaths in Kenya were pneumonia, cancer and cardiovascular diseases. 

Pneumonia, which causes the inflammation of the lungs, topped the list with 9,682 deaths, followed by cancer with 8,954. 

Another 7,478 deaths were due to cardiovascular diseases, while hypertension claimed the lives of 5,035 people. 

The 2024 Kenya Vital Statistics report, which also encompasses the period when Kenya witnessed deadly protests in June, showed that injuries caused 4,574 deaths, while anaemia, which also could be linked to loss of blood, followed closely with 4,572 deaths. 

Kidney illness 

Kidney diseases accounted for 4,247 deaths, prematurity and birth asphyxia had 4,223, diabetes caused 3,822 deaths, while heart disease, with 3,730, tied the list of top 10 killer diseases in Kenya. 

Comparatively, pneumonia claimed the lives of more men (5,244), while cancer killed more women (4,498). 

Notably, HIV/Aids was listed among the top 10 killer diseases among women, having caused 1,380 deaths in 2024, while injuries and kidney diseases were top killers among men with 3,696 and 2,439 deaths, respectively. 

“The sex gap in life expectancy dropped from 3.4 years in 1990 to just 1.4 years in 2000. Even though women tend to live longer than men, the HIV epidemic increased the female mortality considerably, bringing the number of female deaths closer to that of males,” the report indicated. 

Among children below the age of 5 years, the majority of the deaths were caused by prematurity and birth asphyxia, pneumonia and respiratory disorders. 

The majority of children between the ages of five and 14 years died from anaemia (362), pneumonia (301), malaria (242), cancer (171) and injuries (158). 

Shockingly, in the 15 to 29-year-old group, registered deaths due to injuries were the highest at 1,303, followed by cardiovascular disease with 602 deaths. 

Road traffic accidents were also a top killer, having claimed 537 deaths, closely followed by anaemia with 536, and pneumonia with 472 deaths. 

The total number of children adopted in Kenya in 2024 was 335, which was lower than the number of adoptions in 2023, which was 447. 

Cancer claimed the highest number of lives for adults in the age of 30-49, registering 1,896 deaths, followed by injuries (1,753), cardiovascular diseases (1,664), pneumonia (1,351) and HIV/Aids with 1,330 deaths. 

In older Kenyans, those who are above 50 years old, cancer remained the leading cause of death, claiming over 6000 lives, followed by cardiovascular diseases and pneumonia. 

However, the report states that the data was not conclusive, as many other deaths occur outside hospitals and are not reported to the authorities for documentation.