Edha Nahdi commits $35m for 10 maternal hospitals in Kenya

Tanzanian business tycoon Edha Nahdi has committed KSh 4.5 billion ($35 million) to build and fully equip 10 Level 4 mother-and-child hospitals across Kenya, in what President William Ruto’s government described on Tuesday as the largest private-sector health grant in the country’s history.

The commitment, formalised through a Letter of Intent signed at State House in Nairobi, covers 10 counties including 2 locations in Nairobi, as well as Kwale, Mombasa, Garissa, Kisumu, Embu, Nakuru, Uasin Gishu and West Pokot. The facilities, branded as “Amsons Mama na Mtoto Kwanza,” will be constructed and handed over to the Kenyan government under a Build, Equip and Transfer model. Amsons Group will put more than $3.5 million into each hospital. Construction will run across 3 fiscal years beginning in 2026/2027 and completing in 2028/2029.

“As a responsible corporate citizen, Amsons Group shares in the government’s obligation to ensure that we reduce maternal and newborn deaths,” Nahdi said at the State House signing ceremony. “In this project, Amsons Group is not building hospitals; we are helping advance healthcare delivery in Kenya.”

Ruto, who presided over the LOI signing, welcomed the initiative as a meaningful commitment to a country where maternal death rates remain stubbornly high across a significant portion of its geography. Kenya has 26 high-burden maternal death counties, and the 10 new hospitals are intended to address gaps in a system that leaves more than 1 million underserved women without adequate access to safe delivery facilities. Businessday NG