- As of mid-2025, local production of essential medicines still only accounts for ~30% of those on the Kenya Essential Medicines List (KEML), falling short of the 50% target to be reached by 2026.
- Proposed tax changes, in particular how raw materials and inputs are treated under VAT, threaten to raise the cost of production for local pharmaceutical firms.
- Implementation and regulatory bottlenecks also persist, such as delays in registration of medicines, challenges in technology transfer, dependence on imported active pharmaceutical ingredients, and inconsistent application or scale of tax incentives.
