Contraception
Free at public facilities and backed by community health workers, with high use of injectables and implants and approved self-injection.
Contraception is free in public facilities, with a strong community health worker network and high uptake of injectables and implants. Adolescent access is provided for in policy, though provider attitudes remain a barrier in practice.
Key points
| Free at public facilities | Under the national family planning programme |
|---|---|
| Self-injection | Approved and promoted for the subcutaneous injectable |
In practice
- Ask about self-injection: it removes the need for a clinic visit every three months.
- Youth-friendly corners exist at many facilities and can be requested by name.
Worth knowing
Spousal consent is not a legal condition. Guidelines state this explicitly, and you can ask to see them at the facility.
The general article: Contraception · Compare with another country
Abortion
Article 26(4) of the Constitution permits abortion where there is an emergency or life or health is in danger, and post-abortion care is owed to all.
Article 26(4) of the Constitution permits abortion where, in the opinion of a trained health professional, there is need for emergency treatment, or the life or health of the mother is in danger, or as permitted by any other written law. The High Court has confirmed that abortion in those circumstances is a constitutional right and that arbitrary prosecution of health workers is unlawful.
Key points
| Maputo Protocol | Ratified in 2010, with a reservation to article 14(2)(c): States must allow medical abortion for pregnancies resulting from sexual assault, rape or incest, and where the mother's mental or physical health, or the life of the mother or foetus, is at risk |
|---|---|
| Constitution | Article 26(4) permits termination where a trained health professional finds an emergency or a risk to life or health |
| Case law | A 2022 High Court decision affirmed that abortion care under Article 26(4) is a constitutional right |
| Guidelines | Clinical standards were withdrawn in 2013, leaving providers uncertain |
| Trained professional | The Constitution refers to a trained health professional, not only a doctor |
In practice
- Cite Article 26(4) if a facility is unsure: the constitutional wording is broader than many providers believe.
- Post-abortion care is available in public facilities and cannot be conditioned on a police report.
Worth knowing
Health, not only life, is an express ground in the Constitution. That wording is wider than in most neighbouring countries and is frequently misunderstood.
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Parents: a teenager’s first relationship
Kenya has an adolescent sexual and reproductive health policy and a network of youth-friendly centres, and the constitution guarantees the right to health care including reproductive health. The tension has been around consent for HIV testing of adolescents, where the courts have had to clarify when a young person can be tested and counselled without a parent. Contraceptives are widely available in pharmacies.
Frequently asked questions
Can an adolescent be tested for HIV without a parent in Kenya?
The framework allows testing of adolescents with counselling, and the courts have addressed the limits of parental consent in this area. In practice youth-friendly centres test and counsel young people directly. If in doubt, go to a centre designated as youth-friendly rather than a general facility.
Is contraception available to unmarried young people?
Yes. Pharmacies supply condoms and emergency contraception without a prescription, and public and non-governmental clinics provide the full range. The county-level youth-friendly centres are the intended entry point.
The general article: Parents: a teenager’s first relationship · Compare with another country
Sexual orientation
The penal code continues to criminalise so-called carnal knowledge against the order of nature, with a maximum of fourteen years, and a 2019 High Court ruling declined to strike the provisions down. In 2023 the Supreme Court held that organisations may not be denied registration on grounds of sexual orientation, confirming freedom of association. Prosecutions of consenting adults are uncommon, but arrests, extortion and eviction are not.
Kenya retains colonial-era provisions criminalising carnal knowledge against the order of nature, upheld by the High Court in 2019 in a decision under appeal. In 2023 the Supreme Court held that the refusal to register an LGBTQ organisation was unconstitutional, confirming a right to associate — a significant ruling that provoked a political backlash and attempts to legislate against it.
Key points
| Criminal law | Up to fourteen years under the penal code; the right to register an organisation was confirmed in 2023 |
|---|---|
| Discrimination | No legal protection on grounds of sexual orientation |
| Marriage and unions | Not available |
| Organisations | Operate under legal and financial pressure, often through health programmes |
| Extortion | Common, usually arranged through dating applications |
| Health care | Testing and treatment remain accessible without disclosure |
| Travellers | The law applies to visitors and foreign residents |
Frequently asked questions
What did the Supreme Court decide in 2023?
That the refusal by the NGO Co-ordination Board to register an organisation because of its name and purpose breached the constitutional right to freedom of association. The court distinguished the right to organise from the criminal provisions, which it did not rule on. The decision stands despite calls for it to be reviewed.
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Drugs and controlled substances
A 1994 Act governs possession and trafficking, and methadone clinics operate in Nairobi and Mombasa.
Possession for personal use carries a fine or imprisonment; trafficking carries life imprisonment and a fine keyed to the market value of the consignment. The coast has an established heroin-using population, and Kenya operates methadone clinics in Nairobi and Mombasa — among the first in the region.
Key points
| Main statute | The Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (Control) Act 1994 |
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Where to go
- NACADA helpline 1192, and methadone clinics in Nairobi and Mombasa
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Alcohol and tobacco
A 2007 tobacco act with graphic warnings, nicotine pouches brought under control, and a crackdown on illicit brews.
Kenya's Tobacco Control Act is among the more strongly implemented on the continent, with graphic warnings and a tobacco control fund financed by the industry.
Kenya's Tobacco Control Act dates from 2007 and was reinforced by regulations in 2014 after a long legal battle with the industry that went to the Supreme Court. Nicotine pouches, which arrived aggressively marketed, were brought under control in 2022. The alcohol problem is different: illicit brews, chang'aa above all, caused repeated mass poisonings and prompted a national crackdown from 2024.
Recent changes
The 2024 national campaign against illicit alcohol led to mass closures of unlicensed outlets and a review of licensing rules; nicotine pouches were brought under regulatory control in 2022 after an aggressive marketing push.
Frequently asked questions
Are nicotine pouches legal in Kenya?
They are regulated rather than banned. After a period in which they were marketed freely, the authorities brought them under tobacco control and pharmacy rules, restricting flavours, marketing and sale to minors. The market has contracted significantly as a result.
What is the problem with illicit alcohol?
Unlicensed brews, often adulterated with methanol, have caused repeated deaths and blindness. A national enforcement campaign from 2024 closed thousands of outlets and destroyed stock. The underlying driver is price: taxed alcohol is out of reach for many drinkers.
The general article: Alcohol and tobacco · Compare with another country
General sources
- eCitizen — official government services portal