President William Ruto’s government is facing fresh criticism after civil society organisations accused it of prioritising debt repayments over the wellbeing of millions of Kenyans, warning that the country’s debt burden has become a public health emergency.

Speaking during the launch of the Freedom from Debt report in Nairobi on Wednesday, July 1, 2026, health stakeholders said Kenya is now spending 9.2 times more on servicing debt than on healthcare, with nearly 70 per cent of government revenue going to creditors instead of essential public services.

Dr Samuel Kinyanjui of AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF) faulted the government’s spending priorities, saying the country was placing lenders ahead of its own citizens.

“Kenya pays its creditors nine times more than it spends on its hospitals. If your landlord took nine times your rent before you could buy food, we’d call that a crime. In sovereign finance, we call it a credit rating,” Kinyanjui said.

According to the stakeholders, public debt has also surpassed Ksh13 trillion, equivalent to 69.9 per cent of GDP, more than double the 30 per cent sustainability threshold cited by the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

They warned that the consequences are already being felt across the country through shortages of HIV drugs and testing kits, stalled county services, reduced school feeding programmes, shrinking social protection budgets and underfunded youth health clinics.

While describing sovereign debt as “a financial pathogen” consuming the state from within, the group insisted that countries cannot deliver quality healthcare or education while prioritising debt repayments over people.

They are now demanding an immediate pause on debt repayments during health emergencies, the creation of a united borrowers’ forum for African nations, and new financing mechanisms, arguing that Kenya’s fiscal policy should protect citizens before satisfying creditors.