Kenyan billionaire Manu Chandaria has donated KES 40 million ($286,000) to the Kenyatta University Teaching Research and Referral Hospital (KUTRRH) to expand its cancer treatment center. Chandaria and his family recently presented the contribution to the chair of the hospital’s board, Professor Olive Mugenda.
The Kenyan tycoon made the gift through his charity, the Manu Chandaria Foundation.
KUTRRH is a leading national referral hospital with a 650-bed capacity and state-of-the-art medical amenities. The hospital is equipped to offer specialized oncology, trauma and orthopedics, renal, and accident and emergency services, but the oncology center is its flagship project. Former Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta officially opened the hospital on Sept. 10, 2020 though it had been in operation since October 2019. It has an integrated molecular imaging center that helps treat and diagnose cancer, one of the significant reasons Kenyans travel abroad to seek.
Chandaria is the chairman and CEO of Comcraft Group, a global corporate conglomerate with activities in over 40 countries.
Chandaria, regarded as one of Kenya’s premier industrialists, is well-known for his significant philanthropic activity and contributions to society.
He is the founder chairman of the East African Business Council and the former chairman of the Kenya Association of Manufacturers. He has been named the most respected CEO in East Africa three times in a row. During his career, he has served on numerous government panels to alleviate poverty, foster economic development, and reform the government.
He founded the Chandaria Foundation, which has established the Chandaria School of Business at USIU, and the Chandaria Business Innovation and Incubation Centre at Kenyatta University to help students develop their skills and expertise.
The Kenyan government awarded Chandaria the Elder of the Order of the Burning Spear and the Order of the British Empire by Queen Elizabeth in 2003 to appreciate his community service and support of Kenyan-British relations.
