University linked to Kenya’s Moi family seeks approval for $298-million private hospital

Kabarak University, a Kenyan university linked to late President Daniel Arap Moi’s family, is seeking regulatory approval for its proposed Ksh35-billion ($297.9 million) private hospital in Nakuru County, one of the country’s urban centers.

According to Business Daily, a regulatory filing received by the National Environmental Management Authority (NEMA) revealed that the multimillion-dollar hospital will not only serve as a research and training center for health professionals in East Africa, but will also house a top cancer treatment center.

The proposed project, which has been in the works for a decade, will have 500 beds and be built on a 100-acre land plot. According to filings, from the date when approvals are granted, the private hospital is expected to be completed in less than three years.

The engineering, procurement, and construction contract is valued at Ksh 28.1 billion ($257 million) and will be carried out through a strategic partnership agreement with Canadian firm Minaean SP Construction Corp, bringing the project cost to $298 million.

When completed, the project will compete with leading private hospitals in Kenya, such as the Aga Khan University Hospital, which has more than 250 beds, Nairobi Hospital, which has 355 beds, Karen Hospital, which has 102 beds, and M. P. Shah Hospital, which has 210 beds.

The private hospital’s opening is expected to broaden the Moi family’s investment portfolio, which includes a significant stake in Siginon Group, East Africa’s largest integrated logistics services provider.

With over 300,000 acres of prime land in their portfolio, the Moi family is reputed to be Kenya’s second-largest landowners after the Kenyatta family.

The Kenyan family received Ksh54.4 million ($470,000) in dividends from their stake in Standard Chartered Bank of Kenya, the Kenyan subsidiary of the British multinational financial conglomerate Standard Chartered Bank, nearly four weeks ago.